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STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


o 

DEPARTMENT  OF  CHEMISTRY 


o 

A REPORT  OP  THE  INVESTIGATIONS 
CONCERNING 

The  Chemical  Composition 
of  Wheat 

1906  TO  1912  INCLUSIVE 

By  R.  W.  THATCHER 


o 

BULLETIN  No.  Ill 

September,  1913 

0 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


D.  S.  TROY,  President Chimacum 

JAS.  C.  CUNNINGHAM,  Vice-President.. Spokane 

E.  A.  BRYAN,  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

Pres  dent  of  the  College 

R.  C.  McCROSKEY Garfield 

PETER  McGREGOR Spokane 

LEE  A.  JOHNSON Sunnyside 


STATION  STAFF 


*R.  W.  THATCHER,  M.  A Director 

IRA  D.  CARDIFF,  Ph.  D D rector 

ELTON  FULMER,  M.  A State  Chemist 

S.  B.  NELSON,  D.  V.  M Veterinarian 

O.  L.  WALLER,  Ph.  M Irrigation  Engineer 

A.  L.  MELANDER,  M.  S Entomologist 

O.  M.  MORRIS,  B.  S Horticulturist 

GEO.  W.  SEVERANCE,  B.  S Agriculturist 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S Soil  Physicist 

A.  B.  NYSTROM,  M.  S Dairy  Husbandman 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S Chemist 

PAUL  J.  WHITE,  M.  S.  A.,  Ph.  D Agronomist 

W.  T.  SHAW.  B.  Agr.,  M.  S Zoologist 


R.  C.  ASHBY,  B.  S 

J.  G.  HALL,  M.  A 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  D.  V.  M 

ALEX  CARLYLE. 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A 

M.  A.  YOTHERS,  B.  S 

W.  L.  HADLOCK,  B.  A 

HENRY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S 

C.  F.  MONROE,  B.  S.  A 

W.  J.  YOUNG,  B.  S 

C.  B.  SPRAGUE,  B.  S 

D.  C.  GEORGE,  B.  S 

R.  E.  HUNDERTMARK,  B.  S, 
ELLA  W.  BROCK 


. .Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Cerealist 

Assistant  Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Chemist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Assistant  Cerealist 

. . . .Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  in  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Dairy  Husbandman 

Executive  Clerk 


♦Resigned  April  1,  1913. 


zi  h 

ino.ii  1 - 13  ^ 

TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Page 

Introduction  4 

Part  I. — A Study  of  Environmental  Influences  Upon  the 
Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 

Review  of  Investigations  Concerning  the  Composition 


of  Wheat  7 

Relation  of  Climate  to  Composition  of  Wheat 13 

Influence  of  Soil  Composition 17 

Influence  of  Total  Annual  Rainfall 24 

Influence  of  Sunlight 29 

Influence  of  Length  of  Growing  Season 33 

Influence  of  Length  of  Period  of  Kernel-Formation 39 

Influence  of  Transfer  of  Seed 47 


Part  II. — Line-Selection  Breeding  for  Variation  of 


Nitrogen  Content  of  Wheat 

Breeding  Wheat  for  Improvement  in  Composition 52 

Variability  in  Nitrogen  Content  of  Wheat 58 

Experiments  in  Line-Selection  Breeding  for  Change 

of  Nitrogen  Content  of  Wheat 64 


& 


4-9>02~9& 


INTRODUCTION 


The  writer’s  interest  in  the  problems  involved  in  the  chem- 
ical composition  of  wheat,  as  discussed  in  detail  in  the  follow- 
ing pages,  was  first  aroused  by  his  participation  in  the  investi- 
gations in  progress  at  the  Nebraska  Experiment  Station  during 
his  connection  with  that  Station  as  Assistant  Chemist  from 
September,  1899,  to  June,  1901.  Following  his  removal,  in 
July  of  1901,  to  the  Experiment  Station  of  Washington,  his 
duties  as  Assistant  Chemist  of  the  latter  Station  reciuired  the 
devotion  of  his  entire  attention  to  other  lines  of  investigation 
for  two  or  three  years.  Soon  after  he  was  made  Chemist  of 
the  Station,  in  1903,  however  he  secured  the  approval  of  a 
project  of  investigation  of  the  wheats  of  Washington  with 
special  reference  to  their  value  for  bread-making  purposes 
and  the  possibilities  of  improvement  in  composition  of  the 
“soft  wheats”  of  the  Pacific  Northwest.  These  investigations 
naturally  soon  came  to  be  concerned  largely  with  the  funda- 
mental principles  governing  the  chemical  composition  of  the 
^.vheat  kernel.  A study  of  the  factors  which  influence  chem- 
ical composition  of  plants  in  general,  and  the  wheat 
berry  in  particular,  was  inaugurated  early  in  1905. 
This  was  followed  by  a thorough  study  of  the  varia- 
tions between  different  varieties  of  wheat  grown  under 
identical  and  under  variable  environmental  conditions,  of  the 
differences  in  composition  of  the  grain  from  different  plants 
and  different  parts  of  the  same  plant  when  grown  under 
identical  conditions;  of  the  influence  of  the  different  environ- 
mental factors  upon  the  composition  of  wheat;  and  finally  of 
the  possibility  of  change  in  composition  of  wheat  by  line  selec- 
tion of  individual  plants  and  parts  of  plants  showing  a superior 
composition,  or  quality,  over  others  grown  under  identical 
environmental  conditions. 

The  investigations  naturally  divided  into  three  general 
groups,  namely:  those  having  for  their  purpose  a knowledge 
of  the  composition  of  the  wheats  of  the  State  as  they  are  now 
being  grown ; second,  those  which  were  concerned  with  the 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


5 


factors  influencing  the  composition  of  wheat;  and  finally,  the 
question  of  the  possibility  of  improvement  in  composition  by 
line-selection  of  improved  seed.  Reports  of  progress  have  been 
presented  from  time  to  time,  in  various  forms.  The  five  years’ 
study  of  the  composition  of  Washington  wheats  was  completed 
with  the  analyses  of  samples  of  the  crop  of  1910,  and  the  re- 
sults of  the  work  reported  in  Bulletins  Nos.  84,  91,  and  100, 
of  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  the  last 
mentioned  bulletin  containing  a summary  of  the  five  years’ 
v/ork  and  the  conclusions  to  be  drawn  from  it.  Mention  was 
made  in  these  bulletins  of  some  phases  of  the  investigations  of 
the  factors  influencing  the  composition  of  wheat  and  other 
partial  reports  of  progress  of  this  work  and  certain  conclu- 
sions to  be  drawn  therefrom  have  been  presented  from  time 
to  time  in  public  addresses,  and  printed  in  published  proceed- 
ings of  meetings  at  which  these  addresses  were  delivered,  to 
which  reference  will  be  made  in  the  proper  places  in  subse- 
quent pages  of  this  report.  The  preliminary  studies  of  varia- 
tion in  composition  of  different  parts  of  an  individual  wheat 
plant  and  of  individual  plants  in  the  same  row  and  field,  and 
of  a basis  of  selection  of  a desirable  unit  for  line-breeding  for 
change  in  composition,  have  been  published  as  Bulletin  No.  102 
of  the  Station  and  in  articles  in  the  Journal  of  the  American 
Chemical  Society.  The  results  of  the  line-breeding  experi- 
ments, involving  five  years  of  line-selection  of  high  and  low 
nitrogen  parents,  and  two  three-year  line-selections  of  the  same 
portions  of  individual  spikes,  have  never  been  publicly  re- 
ported, although  a preliminary  report  of  the  first  two  years’ 
results  was  presented  as  a paper  before  the  American 
Society  of  Agronomy  at  its  meeting  in  Washington,  D.  C.,  in 
1910.  The  completed  results,  with  the  conclusions  to  be  drawn 
therefrom,  are  here  presented  for  the  first  time. 

During  the  progress  of  these  studies,  other  investigators  have 
been  at  work  on  some  of  the  phases  of  the  general  problem  and 
have  published  results  leading  to  the  same  general  conclusions 
as  will  be  shown  herein.  The  preliminary  publication  of  some 
of  the  writer’s  deductions  has  been  followed  by  confirmatory 
evidence  from  others  and  sometimes  preceded  by  publication  of 


6 Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

similar  results  obtained  by  investigators  elsewhere.  Recogni- 
tion of  this  work  will  be  found  in  various  parts  of  this  report. 

It  is  deemed  wisest,  however,  to  present  in  full  in  this 
report  the  various  phases  of  the  problem  which  have  been 
studied  and  the  results  accomplished  in  connection  with  them, 
even  though  some  of  the  conclusions  which  are  to  be  drawn 
from  this  work  have  been  reached  independently  by  other 
workers  in  this  general  field  and  given  prior  publication.  The 
purpose  of  the  preparation  of  this  report  is  that  it  may  serve 
as  a general  review  of  all  the  writer’s  investigations  in  the  two 
phases  of  the  problem  which  are  of  general  public  interest, 
namely:  the  influences  of  environmental  factors  upon  the 
composition  of  wheat,  and  line-selection  breeding  for  variation 
in  the  nitrogen  content  of  wheat. 

The  writer  desires  to  express  here  his  indebtedness  to 
Messrs.  H.  R.  Watkins,  Arthur  Glover,  Geo.  A.  Olson,  C.  N. 
Ageton,  and  W.  L.  Hadlock,  who,,  as  chemists  or  assistant  chem- 
ists in  the  Experiment  Station  laboratory,  have  assisted  him  in 
the  accumulation  of  the  analytical  data  here  presented;  and 
to  Messrs.  C.  W.  Lawrence  and  Alex  Carlyle,  cerealists  of  the 
Station,  for  assistance  in  the  cultivation  and  harvesting  of  the 
-crops  grown  from  the  selected  seed  under  investigation. 


PART  I. 


A STUDY  OF  ENVIRONMENTAL  INFLUENCES  UPON 
THE  CHEMICAL  COMPOSITION  OF  WHEAT 


Review  of  Investigations  Concerning  the  Composition  of 

Wheat 

The  chemical  composition  of  wheat  has  been  a matter  of 
general  public  interest  and  of  scientific  study  for  nearly  a 
century.  The  earlier  investigations  were  chiefly  concerned 
with  th(3  composition  of  the  crop  as  an  indication  of  its  require- 
ment of  plant  food,  this  latter  being  considered  the  basis  for 
skillful  fertilizing  of  the  soil  in  order  to  secure  the  greatest 
possible  yield  of  the  crop.  These  studies  took  the  form, 
chiefly,  of  elaborate  analyses  of  wheat,  sometimes  of  the 
various  parts  of  the  whole  plant  separately  or  collectively,  and 
sometimes  of  the  grain  alone,  at  various  stages  of  its  growth. 
Later  investigators  made  elaborate  studies  of  the  wheat  kernel, 
from  the  standpoint  of  its  food  value.  The  more  recent  in- 
vestigations have  dealt  chiefly  with  the  composition  of  the 
grain  as  affecting  milling  value  and  the  baking  qualities  of 
the  flour  made  from  it,  summarized  in  the  somewhat  elastic 
term,  the  ‘‘strength”  of  flour. 

As  early  as  1869,  Isidore  Pierre  published  in  France  his 
classic  article  on  “Experimental  Studies  of  the  Development 
of  Wheat”  (Recherches  experiment  ale  sur  le  developpement 
du  ble),^  in  which  he  stated  his  conclusions  to  be  that  the  life 
of  the  wheat  plant  (and  all  similar  herbaceous  plants)  may  be 
sharply  divided  into  two  parts,  in  the  first  of  which  it  elabor- 
ates the  constituents  which,  during  the  second  stage,  it  trans- 
ports to  the  kernel.  Deherain  and  BreaT,  however,  reached 
the  conclusion  that  herbaceous  plants  do  not  all  act  alike  in 
this  regard,  and  divided  such  plants  into  several  groups ; one 

^Mem.  Soc.  Linneenne  de  Normandie,  XV.,  (1869)  1,  220. 

Ann.  Agronomique.  7,  (1881)  160. 


8 Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

of  which  '‘includes  those  plants  which  ripen  their  seeds  while 
still  increasing  their  weight  of  dry  matter;  as  a consequence 
of  the  results  obtained  in  1881,  wheat  should  be  classed  among 
these/’  This  difference  of  opinion  led  Deherain  and  Meyer  to 
make,  in  1881,  a very  careful  study  of  the  composition  of  wheat 
taken  at  successive  stages  of  growth,  making  analyses  for 
moisture,  ash,  phosphoric  acid,  protein,  ether  extract,  non- 
reducing sugars,  reducing  sugars,  starch, .and  cellulose,  upon 
both  the  above-ground  portion  and  the  roots  of  the  plant. 
Their  results  were  reported  in  a very  comprehensive  article 
entitled  “Investigations  Concerning  the  Development  of 
Wheat”  (Recherches  sur  le  developpement  du  ble)"  which 
presented  their  conclusions  that  “In  1881,  at  Grignon,  wheat 
increased  its  weight  of  dry  matter  up  to  the  time  of  harvest”; 
that  this  increase  is  “in  the  starch  and  cellulose,  the  nitro- 
genous matter  and  mineral  matter  remained  stationary  during 
the  last  two  months  of  growth”;  and  that  “the  cessation  of 
assimilation  of  nitrogenous  and  mineral  matter  appears  to  be 
caused  exclusively  by  the  peculiar  conditions  of  the  season.” 
Investigations  concerning  the  nature  of  this  climatic  influence 
were  continued  by  Deherain  and  his  assistants  and  will  be 
referred  to  in  the  appropriate  portion  of  this  report. 

Similar  studies  were  made  in  Germany  by  ReiseC,  Stock- 
hardC,  Luc  anus®,  SiegirC,  Heinrich®,  Nowacki®,  and  Handtke“. 
As  reviewed  by  Kornicke  and  Werner  in  their  “Handbuch  des 
Getreidebanes"^ ” and  by  Kornicke  in  his  “Die  Arten  und 
Varietaten  des  Getriede^,”  these  early  German  studies  led 
to  the  general  conclusion  that  the  percentage  of  nitrogenous 
and  mineral  matter  in  the  wheat  kernel  diminishes  as  the  plant 
matures,  while  the  percentage  of  carbohydrates  increases,  but 


nbid,  8.  (1882)  23-43. 

^Dingler’s  Polyt.  Jour.  129,  298. 

•'’Zeits.  f.  D.  Landw.  (1851). 

®Landw.  Vers.  Stat  4 (1862). 

’Ibid,  5 ( 1864)  135. 

*'Ann.  d.  Landw.  in  Preussen  50,  (1867)  314,  und  57,  (1871  ) 31. 
’"Chem.  Ackersm.  16  (1870)  163. 

“Berlin,  1 884. 

’-Berlin,  1 885. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


9 


that  the  absolute  amount  of  all  these  constituents  increases  up 
to  the  time  of  maturity,  the  percentage  decrease  in  nitrogen 
and  ash  being  due  to  a proportionately  more  rapid  develop- 
ment of  carbohydrates  during  later  stages  of  growth.  Later 
analyses  by  Nedokutschajw'",  with  improved  analytical 
methods,  showed  an  almost  uniform  decrease  in  percentage  of 
nitrogenous  matter  as  the  wheat  approaches  maturity.  He  dis- 
tinguished between  the  proteid  and  amid  nitrogen  and  con- 
cluded that  the  protein  substances  in  the  seed  are  produced 
by  the  translocation  to  the  kernel  of  amids  formed  in  the 
leaves. 

In  Austria-Hungary,  Liebscher”  made  a study  of  the  plant 
food  elements  taken  from  the  soil  by  wheat,  at  various  stages 
of  its  growth,  as  a basis  for  fertilization,  as  a result  of  which 
he  came  to  the  conclusion  that  absorption  of  plant  food,  par- 
ticularly nitrogen,  proceeds  much  more  rapidly  in  proportion 
to  the  formation  of  dry  matter  during  the  earlier  stages  of 
plant  growth  than  when  it  approaches  maturity.  He  divided 
the  life  of  the  plant  into  four  periods,  designated  respectively 
as  the  ‘‘stooling,”  “shooting,”  “spike-forming”  and 
“ripening”  stages  and  showed  that  the  proportion  of  nitrogen 
absorbed  to  dry  matter  formed  decreases  rapidly  through  the 
first  three  stages,  while  practically  no  absorption  of  plant  food 
occurs  during  the  last  stage.  Adorjan^®  repeated  Liebscher^s 
work  with  similar  results,  except  that  he  noted  a very  strong 
phosphorus-absorption  during  the  second,  or  “shooting” 
period.  In  the  first,  or  “stooling”  period  he  found  that  nitro- 
gen was  taken  from  the  soil  about  three  times  as  fast  as  is 
required  for  the  formation  of  dry  matter.  He  states  that  no 
phosphorus  is  taken  up  after  blooming,  and  that  nitrogen 
assimilation  reaches  its  maximum  at  blooming-time,  after 
which  its  absorption  proceeds  only  in  proportion  to  the  grain 
formation,  but  in  much  smaller  proportions  than  in  the  earlier 
stages. 

Analyses  of  wheat  grown  on  the  Rothamsted  Station  in 

^^Landw.  Vers.  Stat.  56  (1902)  303-310. 

“Jour,  fur  Landw.  35  (1887). 

^qbid,  50  (1902)  193-223. 


10  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

England,  in  the  years  1845  to  1854  inclusive,  led  Lawes  and 
Gilbert^®  to  conclude  “heavy  weight  of  grain  per  bushel  is, 
other  things  being  equal,  generally  associated  with  a high  per- 
centage of  dry  substance  and  a low  percentage  of  both  mineral 
and  nitrogenous  constituents.”  Later  studies  of  the  composi- 
tion of  wheat  at  different  stages  of  development  led  the  same 
authors^’  to  conclude  that  “while  during  little  more  than  five 
weeks  from  June  21  there  was  comparatively  little  increase  in 
the  amount  of  nitrogen  accumulated  over  a given  area,  more 
than  half  the  total  carbon  of  the  crop  was  accumulated  during 
that  period.” 

In  the  United  States,  Kedzie  made  extended  analyses  of 
the  wheat  kernel  at  different  stages  of  its  development  in 
1879"®,  and  repeated  the  work  even  more  carefully  in  1892"®, 
His  results  show  a fairly  regular  decrease  in  the  percentage  of 
total,  albuminoid,  and  non-albuminoid  nitrogen  and  of  ash  from 
the  first  formation  of  the  kernel  until  it  ripens.  The  decrease 
in  nitrogen  percentage  was  much  more  rapid  at  first  than  dur- 
ing later  stages  of  kernel  formation.  Teller®®  repeated  this 
work,  at  the  Arkansas  Station,  with  similar  results  so  far  as 
it  concerned  all  the  periods  of  development  except  the  last  ten 
days.  His  results  for  this  last  period  indicated  an  increase  in 
the  percentages  of  nitrogen  and  ash,  but  were  inconclusive 
even  to  the  author  himself.  Snyder®"  reports  that  eighty-six 
per  cent  of  the  total  amount  of  nitrogen  in  the  matured  crop 
is  taken  from  the  soil  within  fifty  days  after  the  plants  appear 
above  ground,  eighty-nine  per  cent  by  the  time  the  heads  are 
formed,  and  ninety-five  per  cent  when  the  kernels  are  “in 
the  milk.”  Lyon  concluded,  as  a result  of  his  review  of  the 
literature  on  the  composition  of  wheat  as  affected  by  the  time 

^®The  Composition  of  Wheat  Grain,  London,  1857. 

^'On  the  Composition  of  the  Ash  of  Wheat  Grain  and  Wheat 
Straw,  London,  1884. 

'"Kept.  Mich.  Bd.  Agr.,  1881-2,  233-239. 

'‘\AIich.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  101. 

=^«Ark.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  53. 

=^^Minn.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  29. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


11 


of  cutting'''*,  that  “immaturity,  althougli  resulting  in  a higher 
percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  wheat  kernel,  would  curtail  the 
production  of  nitrogen  in  the  crop,  and,  furthermore,  that  the 
production  of  proteids  would  be  still  further  lessened  by 
reason  of  the  greater  proportion  of  amid  substances  present 
in  the  grain  at  that  time.” 

The  investigations  thus  briefly  reviewed  led  to  the  gen- 
eral conclusion  that  during  the  latter  part  of  the  life  of  the 
wheat  plant  the  manufacture  of  fresh  material  nearly  ceases 
and  that  the  chief  process  going  on  at  this  time  is  the  migra- 
tion of  accumulated  material  from  the  stems  and  leaves  to 
the  grain.  In  1905,  however,  the  Home  Grown  Wheat  Com- 
mittee of  the  National  Association  of  British  and  Irish  Millers, 
presented  a long  report,  which  was  later  summarized  in  an 
article  by  Humphries  and  Biffen"®,  in  which  it  was  claimed 
that  wheat  cut  early  gave  no  stronger  flour  than  that  from 
fully  matured  grain  and  that  early  or  late  seeding  of  the  crop 
made  no  difference  in  the  strength  of  the  resulting  flour.  The 
authors  admit  that  “strength”  is  a somewhat  indefinite  char- 
acter, but  throughout  the  article  appear  to  use  it  as  definitely 
correlated  with  chemical  composition. 

The  fact  that  the  results  of  the  investigations  of  this  com- 
mittee were  so  at  variance  with  previous  conceptions  led  Miss 
Brenchly  and  Director  Hall  at  the  Rothamsted  Station"*  to 
undertake  a critical  review  of  the  entire  question  of  the  pro- 
gressive development  of  wheat.  They  first  secured  samples 
by  successive  cuttings  of  equal  areas  of  grain  in  a uniform 
field;  next,  they  tried  using  the  grain  from  adjacent  rows  for 
successive  cuttings;  and  again  they  selected  an  equal  number 
(100)  of  apparently  uniform  heads  on  each  successive  date. 
All  these  methods  of  sampling  gave  irregular  results.  Finally, 
they  adopted  the  following  method  of  sampling:  3000  heads, 
all  showing  two  projecting  anthers,  were  tagged  on  the  same 
day,  and  cuttings  from  these  were  made  at  three-day  intervals. 
Only  the  central  stalks  of  each  plant  were  used  for  the  tag- 

""U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Bur.  Plant  Ind.,  Bull.  No.  78,  17-20. 

"^Jour.  Agr.  Sci.  II.  (1907)  1,  1-17. 

"Tbid,  III.  (1909)  2,  195-217. 


12 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


ging  of  the  heads,  so  that  their  results  admittedly  do  not  show 
the  progressive  development  of  the  average  crop.  But  regular 
progressive  development  of  the  selected  heads  was  insured  and 
regular  curves  of  analytical  results  obtained.  Their  investiga- 
tions were  continued  through  the  two  seasons  of  1907  and 
1908,  and  their  results  summarized  as  follows; 

(1)  The  whole  plant,  and  with  it  the  nitrogen,  ash,  and  phos- 
phoric acid  it  contains,  increases  in  weight  until  about  a week 
before  it  would  be  regarded  as  ready  to  cut.  Some  decrease  of  dry 
weight  takes  place  during  the  last  week. 

(2)  In  the  formation  of  the  grain  three  stages  may  be  dis- 
tinguished: 

(a)  A period  during  which  the  pericarp  is  the  most  promi- 
nent feature, 

(b)  The  main  period  during  which  the  endosperm  Is  filled,. 

(c)  The  ripening  period  characterized  by  the  desiccation 
of  the  grain. 

(3)  For  the  filling  of  the  endosperm  each  plant  possesses,  as 
it  were,  a special  mould,  and  continually  moves  into  the  grain 
uniform  material  cast  in  that  mould,  possessing  always  the  same 
ratio  of  nitrogenous  to  non-nitrogenous  materials  and  ash.  The 
character  of  the  mould  possessed  by  each  plant  is  determined  by 
variety,  soil,  season,  etc. 

(4)  The  main  feature  of  the  ripening  process  is  desiccation 
rather  than  the  setting  in  of  such  chemical  changes  as  the  conver- 
sion of  sugars  into  starch,  non-protein  into  protein,  though  the 
latter  change  also  takes  place. 

(5)  The  maximum  dry  weight  of  grain  is  attained  a day  or 
two  before  the  grain  would  be  regarded  as  ripe  by  the  farmer. 
Allowing  for  the  fact  that  the  tillered  shoots  are  a little  behind 
the  central  shoots,  no  loss  of  weight  in  the  crop  will  be  incurred 
by  cutting  before  the  corn  appears  quite  ripe,  while  a number  of 
accidental  mechanical  losses  due  to  birds,  shedding,  weatjier,  may 
thus  be  avoided.  Other  experiments  have  shown  that,  though  there 
may  be  no  gain,  there  will  be  no  loss  in  the  quality  of  the  wheat 
due  to  such  early  cutting. 


RELATION  OF  CLIMATE  TO  COMPOSITION  OF  WHEAT 


The  publication  of  the  results  of  analytical  studies,  as 
reviewed  in  the  preceding  pages,  together  with  the  observed 
fact  that  climatic  influences  would  tend  to  relatively  lengthen 
or  shorten  the  later  period  of  development  of  the  crop,  as  com- 
pared with  the  earlier  stages  in  which  the  processes  of  growth 
were  different,  led  to  a very  general  acceptance,  during  the 
last  decade  of  the  twentieth  century,  of  the  opinion  that  cli- 
mate exerts  a very  important  influence  upon  the  composition 
of  the  wheat  crop.  During  the  last  five  or  six  years,  since 
our  own  investigations  have  been  in  progress,  there  have 
appeared  reports  of  a number  of  carefully  planned  experiments 
to  determine  the  actual  effect  of  various  climatic  factors  upon 
the  composition  of  wheat.  These  will  be  referred  to  in  the 
proper  sections  of  this  report.  Prior  to  about  1905,  however, 
most  of  such  conceptions  were  based  upon  general  observa- 
tions and  the  conclusions  therefrom  stated  in  rather  general 
terms.  Some  of  the  more  important  of  the  statements  of  these 
conceptions  may  be  briefly  reviewed,  as  follows: 

In  1882,  Deherain  and  Meyer"^  attributed  the  inferiority  in 
yield,  and  superiority  in  nitrogen  content  of  the  crop  of  1881 
at  Grignon,  as  compared  with  that  of  1880,  to  the  very  unfav- 
orable summer  weather  in  1881. 

Komicke  and  Werner  ^s  “Handbuch  des  Getreidebaues^'V^ 
published  in  1884,  cites  experiments  to  show  the  effect  of  the 
moist  insular  climate  of  Great  Britain,  as  contrasted  with  the 
drier  continental  climate  of  Germany  and  Russia,  upon  the 
morphological  characters  of  the  wheat  plant,  and  quotes  a 
statement  from  Haberlandt  that  a continental  climate  produces 
a small,  hard  wheat  kernel,  rich  in  gluten  and  of  especially 
heavy  weight. 

Erikssoii"'  expressed  the  opinion  in  1890,  that  in  Sweden 
the  “consistency’’  of  wheat  is  not  a variety  character,  but 

“Ann.  Agronomique  8,  (1882)  23-43. 

“Loc.  cit.  p.  69,  70. 

"'Landw.  Vers.  Stat.  45,  (1890)  pts.  1 and  2. 


14 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


depends  more  upon  the  season  than  upon  the  kind  of  wheat, 

Schindler"®  in  his  book  on  '‘Wheat  in  its  Relation  to  Climate 
and  the  Law  of  Correlation,”  published  in  1898,  says: 

With  the  length  of  the  growing  period,  especially  with  the 
length  of  the  Interval  between  bloom  and  ripeness,  varies  not  only 
the  size  of  the  kernel,  but  also  the  relative  amount  of  carbohydrates 
and  protein  it  contains. 

All  this  shows  that  the  protein  constituent  of  the  kernel  de- 
pends in  the  first  place  upon  the  length  of  the  growing  period  and 
next  upon  the  richness  of  the  soil. 

Melikov"®,  working  with  Russian  wheats,  reached  the  con- 
clusion that  the  nitrogen  content  is  lowest  in  seasons  of  heavi- 
est rainfall,  and  higher  in  drier  years. 

Von  Feilitzer®"  concluded  from  his  experiments  in  Germany 
that  it  is  chiefly  the  weather  which  influences  the  "mealiness” 
or  "glassiness”  of  the  wheat  kernel. 

Deherain  and  Dupont®^  discussed  again  the  observations  of 
the  influence  of  climate  during  different  seasons  upon  the  com- 
position of  the  wheat  crop  at  Grignon,  in  France,  and  reported 
results  of  their  studies  to  determine  the  reason  for  the  observed 
changes,  which  will  be  discussed  in  detail  in  a later  part  of 
this  report. 

Lyon®",  in  his  bulletin  on  "Improving  the  Quality  of 
Wheat,”  published  in  1905,  after  reviewing  the  opinions  of 
Lawes  and  Gilbert,  Kornicke  and  Werner,  Deherain  and  Du- 
pont, Wiley,  Schindler,  Melikov,  and  others,  states: 

The  conclusion  to  be  inevitably  derived  from  these  observations 
is  that  cli.mate  is  a potent  factor  in  determining  the  yield  and  com- 
position of  the  wheat  crop,  and,  further,  that  its  effect  is  produced 
by  lengthening  or  shortening  the  growing  season,  particularly  that 
portion  of  it  during  which  the  kernel  is  developing.  A moderately 
cool  season,  wi.th  a liberal  supply  of  moisture,  has  the  effect  of 
prolonging  the  period  during  which  the  kernel  is  developing,  ihus 

^*Der  Weizen  in  seinem  Bezi.ehungen  zum  Klima  und  das  Gosetz 
der  Korrelation,  Berlin,  1893. 

^«Abs.  in  Exp.  Sta.  Rec.  13  (1901)  451. 

^«Jour.  f.  Landw.  52  (1902)  401-412. 

®^Ann.  Agronomique  28  (1902)  522. 

S.  Dept.  Agric.,  Bur.  Plant  Ind.  Bull.  No.  78. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


15 


favoring  its  filling  out  with  starch,  the  deposition  of  which  is  much 
greater  at  that  time  than  is  that  of  nitrogenous  material.  With 
this  goes  an  increase  in  volume  weight  and  an  increased  yield  of 
grain  per  acre.  On  the  other  hand,  a hot,  dry  season  shortens  the 
period  of  kernel  development,  curtails  the  deposition  of  starch, 
leaving  the  percentage  of  nitrogen  relatively  higher,  and  gives  a 
grain  of  lighter  weight  per  bushel  and  smaller  yield  per  acre. 

Dondlinger  in  his  '‘Book  of  Wheat"'’’  summarizes  the  gen- 
eral opinions  on  this  matter  in  the  following  words : 

Certain  climates  produce  certain  corresponding  characteristics 
in  wheat,  regardless  of  what  the  soil  conditions  are.  The  protein 
content  of  wheat,  and  correspondingly  its  moist  and  dry  gluten,  is 
extremely  sensitive  to  environment  of  a meteorological  nature.  The 
starch  content  is  also  sensitive,  but  in  an  inverse  ratio.  Climate 
varies  from  year  to  year  in  any  locality,  ane.  it  is  well  known  that 
this  causes  corresponding  variations  in  wheat,  even  under  similar 
soil  conditions.  In  the  gluten  content  is  seen  the  first  reflection 
of  a change  in  environment.  The  claim  has  even  been  made  that 
a number  of  varieties  of  wheat  under  uniform  soil  and  meteoro- 
logical conditions  would  yield  relatively  the  same  percentages  of 
gluten,  however  much  these  might  vary  from  the  normal. 

Howard  and  Howard"",  after  expressing  their  opinion  that 
"The  most  important  conditions  influencing  the  growth  of 
wheat  in  India  are:  (1)  the  maximum  duration  of  the  growth 
period  in  each  tract,  and  (2)  the  available  soil  moisture  during 
that  period”  allude  to  the  conclusions  of  Ericksson  and  Kor- 
nicke,  and  quote  from  Fruwirth,  as  follows : 

Dryness  and  poverty  of  soil  clearly  increase  the  gluten  content. 
Besides  this  it  must  be  remembered  that  according  to  Wollny  high 
summer  temperature  and  low  rainfall  in  Hungary,  Roumania,  and 
Southern  Russia  favor  high  nitrogen  content  and  flintiness;  cooler, 
damper  climates  on  the  other  hand  favor  starch  production  and 
flouriness.  In  agreement  with  this,  the  nitrogen  content  of  wheat 
in  Europe  in  general  diminishes  from  south  to  north  and  from 
east  to  west.  Thus  the  gluten  content  In  Southern  Russia,  Rou- 
mania and  Turkey  is  20  per  cent  or  over,  in  Germany  and  Prance 
10  to  15  per  cent,  and  in  England  seldom  more  than  10  per  cent. 


3'New  York,  1908. 

®^Mem.  Dept.  Agr.  of  India  Bot.  Series  Vol.  II.  (1909)  No.  7. 


16  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

Our  own  studies  of  the  chemical  composition  of  Washing- 
ton wheats^  soon  led  us  to  the  conclusion  that  the  climate,  as 
the  determining  influence  upon  the  length  of  the  development 
period  of  the  wheat  kernel,  was  the  chief  factor  in  fixing  the 
composition  of  the  crop  of  any  given  season  or  locality.  We 
were,  therefore,  led  to  undertake  the  series  of  investigations 
of  the  effect  of  different  factors  of  climatic  and  soil  environ- 
ment, acting  singly  or  in  combination,  upon  the  composition  of 
wheat,  the  results  of  which  are  reported  in  detail  in  the  follow- 
ing pages. 


^^Wash.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  Nos.  84,  91,  and  100. 


INFLUENCE  OF  SOIL  COMPOSITION 


At  the  time  of  the  inauguration  of  these  investigations, 
there  appeared  to  be  a great  diversity  of  opinion  among  agri- 
cultural writers  concerning  the  relationship  which  might  exist 
between  the  chemical  composition  of  the  soil  and  that  of  the 
wheat  which  grew  upon  it. 

Von  Feilitzen'®  had  stated  that  the  percentage  of  nitrogen 
was  generally  higher  in  wheat  grown  on  muck  soils,  but  that 
no  definite  relationship  could  be  found. 

Carleton®',  as  a result  of  his  studies  of  the  types  of  wheat 
grown  in  the  different  parts  of  the  United  States,  reached  the 
conclusion  that,  in  general,  high-nitrogen,  or  hard,  wheats 
grow  on  black  prairie  soils,  rich  in  nitrogen,  in  regions  charac- 
terized by  violent  climatic  changes;  but  did  not  attempt  to 
decide  whether"  the  soil,  or  the  climatic  conditions,  was  the 
factor  of  largest  influence. 

Experiments  by  Bolley  in  North  Dakota®®  had  shown  that 
when  wheats  grown  on  farms  in  different  parts  of  the  state, 
having  varied  types  of  soil,  were  sown  side  by  side  on  the  same 
soil  they  gave  practically  uniform  results  in  yield  and  compo- 
sition of  straw  and  grain.  Also,  that  when  hand-picked  uni- 
form seed,  raised  on  a uniform  soil,  was  distributed  to  different 
localities  and  grown  on  varying  types  of  soil,  the  resulting 
crops  showed  great  variation  in  yield  and  composition.  Similar 
results  were  obtained  from  like  experiments  in  Indiana®®  and 
Maryland^®. 

It  seemed  to  the  writer  that  all  experiments  thus  reported 
were  inconclusive  in  that  in  every  case  the  different  soil  types 
were  used  for  experimentation  under  the  different  climatic 
conditions  of  the  different  localities  in  which  they  were  found. 
It  appeared  that  conclusive  evidence  could  be  obtained  only 


^®Jour.  f.  Landw.  52,  (1902)  401-412. 

S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Div.  Veg.  Phys.  and  Path.  Bull.  No.  24  (1900). 
^^No.  Dak.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  17. 

®®Ind.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  41. 

^®Ind.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  14. 


18 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


by  actually  transferring  soil  of  the  different  types  to  the  same 
locality  and  then  growing  wheat  upon  them  under  uniform 
conditions  of  moisture  supply,  length  of  growing  season,  tem- 
perature and  other  climatic  factors,  etc. 

The  results  of  our  first  year’s  study  of  A¥ashington  wheats 
showed  that  there  was  a wide  variation  in  composition  of 
wheat  grown  in  the  same  year,  from  the  same  seed,  upon  our 
experimental  grounds  at  Pullman  and  our  experimental  tract 
at  Ritzville.  The  soil  survey,  which  we  had  previously  made, 
indicated  that  the  soils  at  Ritzville  and  at  Pullman,  while  of 
the  same  general  geological  origin,  and,  therefore,  having  quite 
similar  mineral  plant  flood  percentages,  varied  considerably  in 
their  content  of  organic  matter  and  nitrogen;  the  College  farm 
soil  at  Pullman  showing  0.204  per  cent  of  total  nitrogen  and 
that  from  Ritzville,  0.090  per  cent.  As  shown  in  the  following 
table,  the  wheat  of  higher  protein  content  was  found  in  the 
district  having  the  soil  of  lower  nitrogen  content.  This  ap- 
peared to  be  a quite  general  relationship,  so  far  as  could  be 
discovered  from  the  analyses  of  the  crop  of  1907. 

It  was  determined  to  transfer  a considerable  quantity  of 
soil  from  Pullman  to  Ritzville,  and  vice  versa,  and  grow  the 
same  wheat  upon  the  two  soils  in  the  two  localities  for  a period 
of  years.  A small  area  of  land  was  accordingly  staked  off  on 
each  experimental  tract,  the  soil  removed  from  this  area, 
taking  care  to  sack  up  each  six-inch  layer  separately;  the  re- 
moved soil  was  then  shipped  to  the  other  locality  in  each  case, 
and  filled  into  the  corresponding  excavation,  taking  care  to 
replace  each  six-inch  layer  in  its  same  relative  position  and  to 
tamp  it  down  to  as  nearly  its  original  state  of  compaction  as 
possible.  At  each  place  an  equal  adjoining  area  of  undis- 
turbed soil  was  staked  off  and  prepared  for  seeding.  The  two 
areas  were  then  divided  crosswise,  and  two  samples  of  wheat 
of  the  same  variety,  bluestem,  which  had  been  grown  the  pre- 
ceding year,  one  at  Pullman  and  the  other  at  Ritzville,  were 
sown  on  these  two  sub-divisions  of  each  tract.  During  the 
first  season,  a part  of  the  grain  growing  on  the  soils  thus  pre- 
pared was  destroyed  by  neighbors’  fowls,  but  enoagh  was 
saved  for  analysis.  The  second  year  the  tracts  Avere  seeded 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


19 


in  precisely  the  same  way.  Table  1 shows  the  nitrogen  con- 
tent of  the  original  seed  and  of  the  crop  grown  from  it  on 
the  different  soils  in  each  of  the  two  years. 

Xable  1 — Showing  Effect  of  Soil  from  Different  Sources  on 
Protein  Content  of  Wheat 


Crop  of  Crop  of  Crop  of 
1905  1906  1907 

Nature  of  Crop  Protein  % Protein  % Protein 

Original  seed  grown  at  Pullman....  9.58 
Original  seed  grown  at  Ritzville.  . . . 12.57 

Pullman  seed  grown  on  Pullman  soil  at  Pullman  15.64  13.47 

Pullman  seed  grown  on  Ritzville  soil  at  Pullman  15.90  13.50 

Ritzvi.lle  seed  grown  on  Pullman  soil  at  Pullman  15.67  13.26 

Ritzville  seed  grown  on  Ritzville  soil  at  Pullman  16.10  13.34 

Pullman  seed  grown  on  Pullman  soil  at  Ritzville  17.01  12.64 

Pullman  seed  grown  on  Ritzville  soil  at  Ritzvi.lle  17.31  12.76 

Ritzville  seed  grown  on  Pullmmn  soil  at  Ritzville  lost  12.55 

Ritzville  seed  grown  on  Ritzville  soil  at  Ritzville  16.63  12.60 


These  analyses  clearly  show  that  the  differences  in  com- 
position of  the  original  seed  could  not  have  been  due  to  dif- 
ferences in  the  soil  composition,  nor  was  there  any  relation- 
ship between  the  protein  content  of  the  resultant  (U’ops  nnd 
the  composition  of  the  soil  upon  which  they  grew.  Some  slight 
variations  in  composition  of  the  wheat  for  the  first  year 
were  found,  but  these  were  easily  attributed  to  variations  in 
the  moisture  content  of  the  soil,  due  to  the  impossibility  of 
perfectly  restoring  the  natural  condition  of  compactness  of 
the  transferred  soil.  In  the  second  year,  when  natural  condi- 
tions were  practically  restored,  the  resultant  crops  became  as 
uniform  in  composition  as  could  be  found  on  any  equal  areas 
of  uniform  midisturbed  soil. 

We,  therefore,  reached  the  conclusion  that  the  nitrogen 
content  of  the  soil  has  very  little  if  anything  to  do  with  the 
nitrogen  content  of  the  grain  growing  upon  it  in  any  given 
season. 

In  the  meantime,  Le  Clerc,  as  a result  of  his  ''Tri-Local 
Experiments  on  the  Influence  of  Environment  on  the  Compo- 
sition of  Wheat""”  had  reached  precisely  the  same  conclusion, 
since  in  his  summary  he  says : 


^‘U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.,  Bur.  Chem.  Bull.  No.  12  8. 


20 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


Wheat  of  the  same  variety  obtained  from  different  sources  and 
possessing  widely  different  chemical  and  physical  characteristics., 
when  grown  side  by  side  in  one  locality,  yields  , crops  which  are 
almost  the  same  in  appearance  and  in  composition.  Wheat  of  any 
one  variety,  from  any  one  source,  and  absolutely  alike  in  chemical 
and  physical  characteristics,  when  grown  in  different  localities, 
possessing  different  climatic  conditions,  yields  crops  of  very  widely 
different  appearance  and  very  different  in  chemical  composition. 
These  differences  are  due  for  the  most  part  to  climatic  conditions 
prevailing  at  the  time  of  growth.  The  results  so  far  obtained  would 
seem  to  indicate  that  the  soil  and  seed  play  a relatively  small  part 
in  influencing  the  composition  of  crops.  The  practice  of  trying  to 
improve  crops  in  one  locality,  which  crops  are  to  be  grown  in 
another  locality  of  widely  different  climatic  conditions,  should  be 
discouraged.  Crops  should  be  improved  in  the  locality  in  which 
they  are  intended  to  be  grown,  or  the  seed  should  be  selected  from 
a region  which  has  similar  climatic  conditions. 

Shutt,  also,  had  been  independently  studying  this  same 
problem  with  Canadian  wheats.  His  results,  which  were  re- 
ported from  time  to  time  in  the  various  Annual  Reports  of  the 
Central  Experimental  Farm,  Ottawa,  Canada,  led  him  to  say, 
in  an  address  before  the  Canadian  section  of  the  Society  of 
Chemical  Industry'*':  “Richness  of  the  soil  in  nitrogen  has  but 
little  effect  on  the  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  grain;  many 
sandy  loams  of  moderate  nitrogen  content  produce  wheat  of 
equal  gluten-content  with  that  from  heavy  loams  rich  in 
nitrogen.’^ 

This  same  problem  of  the  relationship  of  composition  of 
grain  to  that  of  the  soil  upon  which  it  grows  has  been  attacked 
by  another  method,  namely:  that  of  addition  of  nitrogen  to 
the  soil  in  the  form  of  fertilizers  and  analysis  of  the  resulting 
fertilized  and  unfertilized  crops,  with  varying  results. 

Von  Feilitzen'*^  found  that  the  addition  of  nitrate  of  soda 
to  the  soil  gave  no  effect  upon  the  protein  content  of  the  grain, 
that  from  the  soil  receiving  the  fertilizer  being  sometimes 
higher  and  sometimes  lower  in  protein  than  that  from  the  same 
soil  without  the  addition  of  the  nitrate.  The  addition  of  the 
nitrogen  fertilizer  increased  the  percentage  of  “glassy”  ker- 

^-Jour.  Soc.  Chem.  Ind.  28,  (1909)  No.  7,  Reprint  page  4. 

^■’Loc.  cit.  page  409. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


21 


nels  (as  separated  under  a diaphanoscope)  in  both  wheat  and 
barley  in  1902,  but  decreased  it  in  wheat  in  1903. 

Humphrey  and  Biffen''  state  that  wheat  from  unfertilized 
plots  at  Rothamsted  was  ''stronger”  than  that  from  manured 
plots  in  both  1903  and  1904,  but  that  the  percentage  of  nitro- 
gen was  higher  in  plots  fertilized  with  commercial  nitrogen. 
At  Woburn  the  "strength”  of  the  wheat  was  unaffected  by 
manure. 

ShutB"  states  that  "The  fertilizer  plots  of  the  Cenlral  Ex- 
perimental Farm,  Ottawa,  have  received  now  for  twenty  years 
all  sorts  of  fertilizers,  and,  so  far,  these  have  not  materially 
affected  the  composition  of  the  grain.” 

On  the  other  hand,  Ames'®  made  a careful  study  of  the 
chemical  composition  of  the  wheat  grown  on  the  various  com- 
parative fertilizer  plots  of  the  Ohio  Station  in  the  seasons  of 
1907,  1908,  and  1909,  and  arrived  at  the  following  conclusion: 

The  composition  of  the  wheat  crop  grown  on  the  unfertilized 
plots  of  two  soils,  containing  different  amounts  of  phosphorus, 
potassium  and  nitrogen,  is  in  accordance  with  the  composition  of 
these  soils. 

The  proportion  of  phosphorus,  potassium  and  nitrogen  in  the 
wheat  plant  is  increased  by  the  addition  of  these  elements  to  the  soil. 

Although  the  extent  of  variation  due  to  seasonal  conditions  is 
greater  than  that  produced  by  changes  in  the  composition  of  the 
soil,  the  variations  due  to  soil  treatment  are  relatively  the  same  for 
the  different  seasons. 

The  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  wheat  plant  varies  with  the 
supply  at  its  disposal,  and  is  also  influenced  to  a considerable  extent 
by  the  supply  of  phosphorus. 

A comparison  of  the  composition  of  the  wheat  plant  grown 
•on  the  same  soil,  under  different  conditions  of  fertilization,  gives 
a better  indication  of  the  available  supply  of  nitrogen,  phosphorus 
and  potassium  in  the  soil  than  can  be  obtained  from  the  analysis 
of  the  soil  itself. 

It  should  be  noted,  however,  that  the  analytical  data  pre- 
sented in  the  bulletin  show  that,  in  many  cases,  the  grain 
grown  on  plots  receiving  nitrogen  fertilizers  carried  no  more, 


"‘‘Loc.  cit,  pages  5 and  6. 
^"Loc.  cit.  page  4. 

^®Ohio  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  221. 


22  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

or  even  less,  nitrogen  than  that  from  adjoining  unfertilized 
plots. 

The  preponderance  of  evidence  seems,  therefore,  to  support 
the  conclusions  that  we  derived  from  our  soil  experiment, 
namely,  that  the  composition  of  the  soil  has  very  little  influ- 
ence upon  the  composition  of  the  crop  grown  upon  it.  There 
is  ample  evidence,  however,  that  the  moisture  content  of  the 
soil  has  a very  marked  effect  upon  the  rate  of  development, 
and  consequently  upon  the  resulting  composition  of  the  grain, 
as  will  be  pointed  out  in  a later  part  of  this  report. 

Note : — After  the  above  report  was  completed  the  writer 
received  a copy  of  Bulletin  No.  216  of  the  California  Station, 
by  G.  W.  Shaw  and  E.  H.  AValters,  entitled  “A  Progress  Re- 
port upon  Soil  and  Climatic  Factors  Influencing  the  Compo- 
sition of  Wheat.”  This  bulletin  reports  an  extension  of  the 
co-operative  work  with  Dr.  Le  Clerc,  of  the  Bureau  of  Chem- 
istry, United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  which  has 
been  reviewed  al)ove,  to  include  a study  of  the  effect  of  the 
soil  itself,  in  almost  precisely  the  same  manner  as  our  expri- 
nients  were  conducted.  Soil  from  Hays,  Kansas,  was  shipped 
to  Davis,  California,  and  placed  in  position  in  precisely  the 
same  way  as  in  our  experiments,  except  that  the  transferred 
soil  was  isolated  from  the  adjoining  local  soil  by  a cement 
wall  one  and  one-half  inches  thick,  to  prevent  the  roots  of  the 
wheat  plants  from  growing  laterally  into  the  other  soil.  A 
year  later,  soil  was  also  secured  from  the  Arlington  Farm  of 
the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  in  Maryland, 
and  similarly  installed  at  Davis,  California.  At  the  same  time, 
California  soil  was  sent  to  Kansas  and  IMaryland,  Maryland 
soil  to  Kansas,  and  Kansas  soil  to  Maryland. 

The  bulletin  reports  the  results  of  the  analyses  of  the 
wheats  grown  upon  the  three  soils,  in  California,  in  the  seasons 
of  1909,  1910,  and,  in  an  addenda,  those  grown  in  1911.  The 
conclusions  from  the  first  two  seasons’  work  are  as  follows: 

It  must  be  said  that  the  results  so  far  obtained  do  not  shed  as 
much  light  upon  the  primary  question  as  to  the  influence  of  the  soil 
nitrogen  upon  the  nitrogen  content  of  the  wheat  as  could  be  de- 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


23 


sired,  possibly  on  account  of  the  short  duration  of  the  experiment. 
It  is  evident,  however,  that  In  neither  of  the  series  of  trials  has  the 
grain  carrying  the  larger  nitrogen  content  been  obtained  from  the 
soil  plat  having  the  heaviest  total  nitrogen  content.  In  the  light 
of  the  present  data  it  seems  quite  certain  that  the  soil  nitrogen  con- 
tent has  very  little,  if  any,  direct  influence  upon  the  nitrogen  con- 
tent of  grain  grown  upon  such  soil,  and  that  some  climatic  factor 
is  sufficient  to  entirely  overshadow  the  soil  factor.  This  Is  entirely 
in  harmony  with  the  work  of  Dr.  LeClerc  previously  reviewed,  and 
also  with  the  well  known  wide  fluctuation  of  the  nitrogen  content 
of  wheat  from  season  to  season,  although  the  grain  be  grown  upon 
the  same  soli.  It  may  be  that  certain  physical  factors,  enabling 
the  soil  to  hold  moisture  better  at  certain  periods  of  the  plant’s 
growth  are  responsible  for  the  difference,  but  of  this  we  have  no 
data  so  far  as  these  plats  are  concerned. 

The  results  also  show  that  a chemical  analysis  of  a soil  by  the 
ten-hour  hydrochloric  acid  (sp.  gr.  1.115)  digestion  method  reveals 
no  definite  relation  between  the  chemical  composition  of  the  soil 
and  the  crop. 

To  this  may  be  added  the  following  observations  from  the 
results  obtained  in  1911 : 

The  most  striking  point  brought  out  by  these  last  figures  is  the 
difference  in  composition  and  appearance  of  the  grain  produced  on 
the  same  soil,  viz.:  the  check  plat  and  the  other  California  soli  plat. 
There  is  a greater  difference  between  these  two  products  than  exists 
between  the  others  or  between  these  and  the  others.  This  differ- 
ence, particularly  with  respect  to  the  nitrogen,  is  not  nearly  so 
great,  however,  as  that  brought  out  by  LeClerc  (loc.  cit.)  from 
his  experiments  in  which  both  soil  and  climate  were  variable  factors. 
It  does,  however,  indicate  that  some  other  factors  pertinent  to 
the  physical  or  biological  conditions  of  the  soil  play  an  important 
role  since  we  have,  in  our  own  experiment,  only  one  variable  factor, 
viz.:  the  soil.  Moreover,  the  slight  variations  occurring  in  the 
chemical  characteristics  in  these  experiments,  being  considerably 
less  than  those  observed  by  LeClerc,  adds  strongly  to  the  belief 
that  the  climatic  factor  is  the  chief  one  in  producing  changes  in 
the  chemical  composition  of  wheat. 

The  results  obtained  by  the  co-operating  Bureau  at  Kansas 
and  at  Maryland,  have  not  yet  been  published,  so  far  as  the 
writer  can  ascertain. 


INFLUENCE  OF  TOTAL  ANNUAL  RAINFALL 


The  wheat  belt  of  Eastern  Washington  is  particularly  well 
adapted  to  serve  for  a study  of  relation  of  total  annual  rain- 
fall to  crop  growth.  The  soil  over  the  entire  belt  is  of  uniform 
origin,  the  famous  basaltic  loam  of  the  Palouse  Country.  This 
soil  is  remarkably  uniform  in  its  mineral  composition.  It 
varies  somewhat  in  its  percentage  of  humus,  with  the  varia- 
tions in  annual  rainfall,  but  these  differences  are  not  very 
marked,  and  the  soil  is  unusually  uniform  in  type  for  so  large 
an  area.  The  length  of  the  growing  season  is  practically  the 
same  over  the  entire  area.  The  distribution  of  the  rainfall 
throughout  the  year  is  practically  identical  everywhere  in  the 
wheat  belt,  there  being  the  characteristic  ‘‘rainy  season”  in 
the  winter,  and  the  “dry  season”  in  the  summer.  The  wheat 
crop  very  generally  secures  its  moisture  from  the  supply  stored 
up  in  the  soil  from  the  winter  season.  Even  the  elevation 
above  sea  level  is  practically  uniform,  the  wheat  being  gener- 
ally grown  on  the  upland  plateau  formed  by  the  great  basaltic 
overflow  which  is  of  the  same  general  elevation.  In  short,  the 
total  rainfall  for  the  year  is  practically  the  only  variable 
among  the  factors  which  influence  plant  growth  and  com- 
position. The  region,  therefore,  serves  admirably  for  the  pur- 
poses of  study  of  the  relation  of  protein  content  of  wheat  to 
rainfall  supply. 

The  analyses  made  during  our  five  years’  study  of  the 
chemical  composition  of  Washington  wheats  included  a total 
of  456  samples.  These  samples  came  from  all  the  different 
wheat  growing  sections  of  the  State  and  were  so  selected  as 
to  secure  a fairly  uniform  distribution  over  the  entire  wheat 
belt  of  the  State.  This  wheat  belt  is  naturally  divided  by  cer- 
tain valleys  and  other  topographic  features  into  certain  fairly 
well  defined  districts.  The  average  composition  of  all  the 
samples  coming  from  each  of  these  districts  being  a matter  of 
large  local  interest,  the  results  of  all  our  analyses  were  grouped 
and  tabulated  according  to  the  districts  from  which  the  samples 
came. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


25 


Immediately  upon  the  completion  of  this  tabulation,  it  ap- 
peared possible  that  the  observed  differences  in  protein  con- 
tent might  be  correlated  with  the  rainfall  in  the  various  dis- 
tricts. The  records  of  the  Weather  Bureau  were  consulted, 
and  the  total  rainfall  at  a central  point  in  each  district,  for  the 
five  years  period  during  which  the  crops  under  investigation 
were  grown,  was  ascertained.  The  resulting  correlation  is 
shown  in  Table  2. 

Table  2 — Relation  of  Protein  to  Rainfall 


Percent 

Weather 

Rainfall,  1905-9 

District 

Protein 

Station 

in  inches 

Adams  and  Franklin 

Cos 

12.82 

Hatton 

45 

S.  W.  Whitman  Co.  . 

12.53 

Okanogan  Co 

12.37 

Omak 

50 

Douglas  Co 

12.25 

Waterville 

58 

N.  W.  Whitman  Co. . 

11.65 

Walla  Walla  Co 

11.56 

Eureka 

69 

Lincoln  Co 

11.16 

Wilbur 

73 

Garfield  and  Asotin 

Cos. 

10.96 

Pomeroy 

82 

N.  E.  Whitman  Co.  . 

10.75 

Rosalia 

97 

S.  E.  Whitman  Co... 

10.63 

Pullman 

103 

Klickitat  Co.  ...... 

9.03 

Goldendale 

116 

From  these  figures  it  is  apparent  that  under  conditions  of 
uniform  soil,  growing  season,  distribution  of  annual  rainfall, 
elevation,  etc.,  with  the  total  annual  rainfall  the  only  variable, 
the  average  protein  content  of  wheat  varies  inversely  with 
the  total  rainfall  received. 

Whether  this  relationship  is  of  wider  application  can  not 
yet  be  definitely  settled.  Professor  E.  G.  Montgomery,  in  an 
unpublished  paper  read  before  an  agricultural  society  meeting 
in  Nebraska,  divided  the  wheat  growing  districts  of  the  United 
States  into  certain  groups  depending  upon  the  degree  of 
^‘softness'’  or  ^'hardness”  of  wheat  grown  in  them.  The  rain- 
fall record  for  some  central  point  within  each  of  these  par- 
ticular districts  was  secured,  and  tabulated  in  Table  3,  in 
which  the  districts  are  arranged  in  the  order  suggested  by 
Montgomery,  the  ‘‘soft’’  wheat  sections  at  the  top  of  the 
column  with  the  degree  of  “hardness”  increasing  as  we  read 
downward.  The  Utah  section  should  probably  be  omitted  from 
the  table  as  much  of  the  wheat  in  Utah  is  grown  with  irriga- 
tion, and  the  annual  rainfall,  therefore,  represents  only  a por- 
tion of  the  moisture  available  to  the  crop. 


26  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

The  rainfall  at  the  particular  point  selected  may  not 
accurately  represent  that  of  the  entire  district,  but  is  fairly 
safe  to  draw  the  following  conclusions,  namely,  that  if  the 
wheats  of  the  Pacific  Coast  States  are  taken  into  consideration 
in  the  comparison,  there  is  no  regular  relation  between  the 
type  of  wheat  and  the  total  annual  rainfall,  or  that  received 
during  the  growing  season ; but  that  if  we  eliminate  the  Pacific 
Coast  wheats  from  the  comparison  the  order  of  rank  of  the 
wheats  in  the  other  several  districts  with  respect  to  “hard- 
ness” is  the  same  as  the  order  of  rainfall  supply. 

Table  3 — Rainfall  in  the  Principal  Wheat  Districts  of  the 

United  States 


cs  P 

p s* 

® EL 


District 

Weather  Station 

Hia 

p 

CO 

p 

- P 
p 

p ^ 

o 

p* 

(D 

CD 

March  to 
inc.,  inches. 

California 

. Sacramento,  Cal.  . . . 

. .40 

19.7 

5.5 

Wash. — Ida. — Ore 

.Walla  Walla,  Wash.. 

. .45 

18.6 

5.8 

Utah  (irrigated) 

.Logan,  Utah  

. .13 

13.4 

6.4 

Southern  coast 

. Baltimore,  Md 

. .30 

45.0 

15.8 

Central  Miss,  valley 

. Dubuque,  la 

. .40 

36.0 

12.8 

Nebr.  spring  wheat 

.Hastings,  Nebr 

. .40 

25.3 

11.8 

Hard  winter  wheat 

. Dodge  City,  Kans.  . . 

. .30 

20.3 

9.4 

Durum  (macaroni.)  wheat. 

. Pierre,  So.  Dak.  . . . 

. .35 

16.8 

8.7 

Hard  spring  wheat 

.Bismarck,  N.  Dak.  . 

. .29 

17.7 

9.0 

In  other  sections  of  the  United  States  and  in  other  wheat- 
growing countries,  where  the  annual  precipitation  does  not 
come  during  the  “rainy  season,”  but  irregularly  during  the 
growing  season,  the  amount  of  moisture  available  for  the  crop 
and  its  influence  upon  the  composition  of  the  wheat  is  better 
measured  by  percentages  of  soil  moisture  than  by  total  annual 
rainfall.  Upon  this  basis,  other  investigators  have  arrived  at 
conclusions  similar  to  those  here  presented. 

Prianishinkov*^  made  analyses  of  wheat  raised  with  dif- 


"Abs.  in  Exp.  Sta.  Rec.  13,  631,  from  Zhur,  Opuitn,  Agron.  1, 
(1900)  3-20. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


27 


ferent  degrees  of  moisture  in  the  same  soil,  under  identical 
conditions  of  light  and  temperature.  He  found  that  with  higher 
percentages  of  moisture  there  was  a lowering  of  the  nitrogen 
content  of  the  grain.  He  found  also  that  the  total  period  of 
growth  was  somewhat  shorter  when  the  moisture  supply  was 
greater. 

Similar  results  are  reported  by  Von  Seelhorst  and  Krzy- 
mowskf*,  who  found  that  the  ripening  of  wheat  is  made  sig- 
nificantly later  by  increases  in  soil  moisture  up  to  70  per 
cent  of  its  capillary  capacity,  this  being  especially  true  when 
the  percentage  runs  between  55  and  70  per  cent.  At  85  per 
cent  the  ripening  was  earlier  than  at  70  per  cent,  doubtless 
because  the  higher  water  content  shortened  the  nitrogen 
supply,  because  of  the  more  rapid  early  consumption  of  nitro- 
gen by  the  greater  growth  in  early  stages.  It  was  found  that 
greater  differences  in  ripening  date  were  caused  by  varia- 
tions in  soil  moisture  than  by  varietal  differences,  since  with 
plenty  of  moisture  in  the  soil  an  early  variety  ripened  later 
than  a late  variety  growing  on  drier  soil. 

Shutt,  in  the  address  already  referred  to,  decsribes  studies 
of  wheats  grown  on  soils  of  various  moisture  content,  with 
the  following  conclusions : ‘ ‘ The  soil  producing  the  softer 

wheat  was  throughout  the  growing  season  more  moist;  its 
percentages  of  water  ranging  from  9 to  14  per  cent  higher 
than  those  of  the  soil  giving  the  harder  grain”  (page  5). 
Again,  ‘'Early  ripening  of  the  wheat,  such  as  is  brought  about 
by  the  gradual  lessening  of  the  supply  of  the  soil  moisture, 
tends,  we  are  of  the  opinion,  to  the  production  of  a hard, 
glutinous  wheat”  (page  7). 

Widstoe  and  Stewart**  found  that  the  effect  of  variation 
of  the  amount  of  irrigation  water  from  five  up  to  fifty  acre 
inches  per  acre  decreased  the  protein  content  of  the  wheat 
from  18.05  to  15.98  per  cent.  Later  investigations  showed  that 
variation  in  the  amount  of  water  applied  gave  this  result  when 
the  applications  were  made  after  the  middle  of  July,  but  that 

"Jour.  f.  Landw.  57  (1910)  113-114. 

"Utah  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  Nos.  119  and  120. 


28 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


the  variations  were  in  the  opposite  direction  when  the  water 
was  applied  on  July  1st.  They  state  that  “As  maturity  was 
approached,  the  per  cent  of  protein  was  markedly  larger 
whenever  little  water  had  been  used.” 

The  obvious  conclusion  from  these  investigations  is  that 
the  moisture  supply  is  a very  potent  factor  in  determining  the 
composition  of  the  wheat  grown  in  any  given  locality  or 
season. 


INFLUENCE  OF  SUNLIGHT 


Agricultural  literature  seems  to  be  almost  completely  de- 
void of  any  accounts  of  experimental  work  to  directly 
determine  the  effect  of  sunlight  upon  the  composition  of  farm 
crops,  aside  from  the  writer’s  own  work. 

Murinoff”,  at  the  University  of  Halle,  conducted  a single 
experiment  with  wheat,  in  which  ‘'etiolated”  plants,  i.  e.  those 
which  had  been  deprived  of  their  chlorophyll  by  shading 
against  sunlight  for  sixteen  days,  were  compared  with  normal 
green  plants.  He  found  that  the  percentage  of  ash,  and  of 
total  and  albuminoid  nitrogen  was  slightly  higher  in  the  nor- 
mal green  plants. 

BertheloU  reports  analyses  showing  the  effect  of  the  shade 
of  an  elm  tree  upon  the  chemical  composition  of  the  grass 
growing  under  it,  and  Strakosch""  studied  the  effect  of  very 
diffused  light  upon  the  elaboration  of  carbohydrates  in  sugar 
beet  leaves. 

Aside  from  these  specific  investigations,  the  literature  of 
this  subject  seems  to  be  confined  to  such  general  statements 
as  those  of  Wohltmann^^,  that  rainy,  cloudy  summers  decrease 
the  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  wheat,  while  dry,  sunny  and 
warm  summers  increase  the  protein  content ; and  of  Humphrey 
and  Biffen®^,  that  the  cloudy  season  of  1903  gave  slightly  great- 
er “strength”  to  English  wheat  than  did  the  sunny  summer 
of  1904. 

Our  ovm  investigations,  which  have  been  described  briefly 
in  articles  in  the  Journals  of  the  American  Chemical  Society'", 
had  for  their  general  plan  a study  of  the  effect  upon  the  grain 
of  shading  the  plants  from  direct  sunlight  during  the  later 
period  of  their  growing  season. 

^'Ber.  d.  Dent.  Bot.  Besell.  25,  (1907)  507-509. 

''■’^Compt.  Rend.  12  8,  (1899)  139-140. 

^-Sep.  from  Oest.  Ungar.  Zeit,  Zuckerind  iind  Landw.  (1  906) 
No.  1. 

■■’Tentrbl.  Agr.  Chem.  35,(1906)41.  i 

'■“Loc.  cit.  page  2. 

■’■‘.Tour.  Am.  Chem.  Soc.  29,  (1  907)  764-767;  and  .Joiir.  Ind.  and 
Eng.  Chem.  1,  (1909)  801-802. 


30  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

The  experiments  were  begun  in  1906.  Six  rows  of  bluestem 
wheat,  grown  from  seed  coming  from  as  many  different  wheat 
producing  sections  of  the  State,  were  used.  Just  at  the  time 
when  the  plants  began  to  blossom,  on  July  12th,  part  of  the 
plants  of  each  row  were  shaded  by  stretching  over  one  end 
of  the  plot  a cover  made  of  heavy,  16-ounce  duck  canvas, 
placing  it  just  above  the  heads  of  the  grain,  so  as  to  com- 
pletely cut  off  all  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun,  but  to  give  free 
access  to  air  and  diffused  light.  Immediately  following  the 
placing  of  this  canvas  in  position,  there  was  a period  of  six 
days  of  cloudy  weather,  during  which  the  shade  would,  of 
course,  have  no  effect.  After  this  there  was  a period  of  hot, 
cloudless  weather,  during  which  the  grain  ripened  up  very 
rapidly,  so  that  the  actual  shading  effect  extended  over  a 
period  of  not  more  than  two  weeks. 

After  the  grain  was  fully  ripe,  several  plants  from  the 
shaded  portion  of  each  row  were  pulled,  taking  care  to  get 
those  which  had  been  well  under  the  cover,  so  that  the  full 
length  of  the  stems  had  been  shaded.  At  the  same  time  a 
similar  number  of  plants  from  the  unshaded  portion  of  the 
same  rows  were  pulled.  All  these  samples  of  grain  were 
threshed  out  by  hand,  and  analyzed  according  to  the  official 
methods  of  the  Association  of  Official  Agricultural  Chemists. 
The  results  of  these  analyses,  calculated  to  the  moisture-free 
basis,  are  included  in  Table  4. 

The  abnormally  short  ripening  period  of  the  first  season 
of  this  experiment  resulted  in  light  weight  kernels,  consider- 
ably shrunken,  and,  therefore,  much  richer  in  protein  and 
poorer  in  starch  than  is  normal  for  this  locality.  The  effect 
of  the  shading  also  extended  over  a much  shorter  period  than 
would  normally  occur.  For  this  reason  the  experiments  were 
repeated  in  the  summer  of  1908,  and  extended  to  other  crops 
than  wheat,  using  also  different  densities  of  shading.  The 
results  for  this  season,  in  so  far  as  the  shaded  and  unshaded 
wheat  are  concerned,  are  included  in  Table  4.  ■ (For  the  results 
of  this  season’s  work  on  other  crops  than  wheat,  the  second 
article  referred  to  above,  or  the  station  laboratory  records  may 
be  consulted.) 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  31 

Table  4 — Analyses  of  Shaded  vs.  Unshaded  Wheats 


Variety 

Crop  of 

Kind  of  Shade . . . 

o Crude  Protein, 
percent 

oa 

BAsIi, 

§ per  cent 

4-1  Ether  Extract, 

® per  cent 

^ Fibre,  etc.,* 

per  cent 

'd 

^Starch, 

^ per  cent 

Bluestem  No. 

1 

1906 

none 

3.05 

22.28 

1.83 

67.53 

5.30 

Bluestem  No. 

1 

1906 

16-oz.  duck 

2.93 

22.41 

1.82 

62.49 

9.83 

Bluestem  No. 

2 

1906  ’ 

none 

2.97 

21.06 



Bluestem  No. 

2 

1906 

16-oz  duck 

2.65 

24'w02 

Bluestem  No. 

3 

1906 

none 

2.35 

22.28 

i.69 

65.56 

' 8*.i2 

Bluestem  No. 

3 

1906 

16-oz  duck 

2.93 

24.01 

2.12 

58.39 

12.54 

Bluestem  No. 

4 

1906 

none 

2.64 

21.69 

Bluestem  No. 

4 

1906 

16-oz  duck 

2.89 

23.57 

Bluestem  No. 

5 

1906 

none 

2.82 

21.16 

1.50 

67.07 

7.45 

Bluestem  No. 

5 

1906 

16-oz.  duck 

3.00 

24.40 

1.74 

62.38 

9.48 

Bluestem  No. 

6 

1906 

none 

1.75 

21.87 

1.56 

66.70 

7.12 

Bluestem  No. 

6 

1906 

16-oz.  duck 

2.37 

20.98 

1.55 

62.28 

12.82 

Jones  Fife 

1908 

none 

1.94 

18.94 

2.79 

66.92 

9.41 

Jones  Fife 

1908 

9-oz.  duck 

2.40 

20.13 

2.68 

66.46 

6.33 

Bluestem  No. 

803 

1908 

none 

2.05 

18.17 

1.74 

66.78 

10.26 

Bluestem  No. 

803 

1908 

burlap 

3.22 

27.08 

2.04 

59.24 

7.70 

Sonora 

1908 

none 

1.83 

18.73 

2.21 

68.84 

8.39 

Sonora 

1908 

burlap 

2.09 

19.92 

2.06 

66.85 

9.28 

♦Calculated  by  difference. 


The  following  brief  summary  indicates  the  general  effect 
of  the  shading  the  crop  from  direct  sunlight  during  the  period 
when  it  is  developing  its  grain,  as  shown  by  the  figures  in 
the  table. 

The  percentage  of  crude  protein  is  higher  in  the  shaded 
sample,  in  every  case,  with  one  exception.  The  average  in- 
crease is  about  ten  per  cent  of  the  total  found  in  the  unshaded 
sample,  but  the  fluctuations  in  this  increase  are  considerable. 

The  percentage  of  starch,  as  determned  by  acid-hydrolysis, 
is  invariably  lower  in  the  shaded  samples.  But  the  effect 
upon  the  starch  is  less  marked  than  that  upon  the  mineral 
and  nitrogenous  matter. 

The  last  column  represents  the  difference  between  the  four 
proximate  constituents  as  determined  by  the  official  methods 
and  100  per  cent.  This  doubtless  includes,  in  addition  to  the 
crude  fibre,  certain  difficultly-hydrolyzable  carbohydrates.  But 


32  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

if  the  figures  of  the  last  two  columns  are  added  and  consid- 
ered as  total  carbohydrate  material,  the  effect  of  the  shading 
upon  this  constituent  group  is  identical  with  that  shown  by 
the  starch  determinations  in  every  case. 

In  brief,  then,  it  may  be  said  that  shading,  whatever  the 
texture  used  or  the  length  of  the  shading  period,  caused  an 
increase  in  the  percentage  of  mineral  and  nitrogenous  matter 
and  decreased  percentage  of  carbohydrates.  The  increase  in 
other  constituents  is  not  directly  proportional  to  the  decrease 
in  starch.  Hence,  we  conclude  that  the  changes  produced  by 
the  exclusion  of  direct  sunlight  are  not  simply  a deterence 
of  the  elaboration  of  starch  or  carbohydrates,  but  that  other 
physiological  changes  are  induced  by  the  shading,  which  are 
not  yet  understood. 


INFLUENCE  OF  LENGTH  OF  GROWING  SEASON 


The  literature  of  this  subject  contains  frequent  statements 
of  opinion,  many  of  which  have  already  been  referred  to  in 
this  report,  concerning  the  relation  of  the  length  of  the  grow- 
ing season  to  the  composition  of  wheat.  Most  of  such  state- 
ments are,  however,  based  upon  general  observations  rather 
than  the  results  of  carefully  conducted  experiments. 

Plant  physiologists  have  attempted  to  show  that  the  com- 
pletion of  each  definite  stage  of  development  of  the  crop  is 
determined  by  the  total  amount  of  effective  temperature,  or 
the  combination  of  temperature  and  effective  sunlight,  as 
measured  in  actinometrie  degrees,  which  the  crop  receives. 
The  most  careful  work  along  this  line  was  reported  by  Marie- 
Davy  in  the  annual  reports  of  the  meteorological  observatory 
at  Montsouri  (Paris).  As  reviewed  by  Abbe,  in  his  ‘^First 
Report  on  the  Relations  Between  Climates  and  Crops^®”  these 
studies,  so  far  as  they  apply  to  wheat,  sought  to  correlate  each 
development  period,  namely,  ^^(1)  sowing  and  germination, 
(2)  heading  out,  (3)  flowering,  and  (4)  ripening”  with  a cer- 
tain definite  amount  of  radiation.  The  data  recorded  show 
a fairly  satisfactory  agreement,  in  different  years,  of  the 
actinometrie  degrees  during  the  same  period  of  growth  of  the 
wheat  crop,  when  the  latter  was  planted  at  approximately 
the  same  date ; but  wheat  planted  at  later  dates  invariably  re- 
ceived larger  total  radiation  before  it  reached  the  heading 
stage  than  did  earlier  plantings.  The  amounts  of  radiation 
received  during  the  flowering  and  the  ripening  periods,  res- 
pectively, were  fairly  uniform  for  different  years  and  for  dif- 
ferent successive  dates  of  planting.  These  observations  might 
indicate  that  the  latter  stages  of  development  of  the  crop  are 
determined  by  climatic  conditions,  and  lengthened  or  short- 
ened thereby  in  any  particular  season.  However,  Abbe  later 
quotes  (pages  316-317)  from  Professor  Brower’s  report  on 
Cereals,  in  the  Tenth  Census,  the  statement  that  ''The  chem- 
ical composition  depends  more  upon  the  variety  cultivated 


®®U.  S.  Dept.  Agric.  Weather  Bureau  Bull.  No.  36. 


34  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

than  upon  either  soil  or  climate.”  These  statements  are  men- 
tioned here  to  show  how  conflicting  the  conclusions  which 
are  drawn  from  general  observations  may  be. 

Lyon®^  found  that  those  wheat  plants  which,  when  sown 
on  the  same  date  in  the  same  row,  ripened  later  (i.  e.  had  a 
longer  growing  season)  gave  a less  yield  of  grain  and  a less 
total  yield  of  proteid  nitrogen,  but  a greater  percentage  of 
nitrogen  in  the  grain,  than  those  which  ripened  earlier. 

During  the  course  of  our  investigations  opportunity  was 
afforded  to  gather  considerable  data  bearing  upon  this  feature 
of  the  general  problem,  a summary  of  which  is  here  presented. 

Effect  of  Fall  vs.  Spring  Seeding. 

It  is  a fact  which  has  been  very  generally  recognized  that 
those  varieties  of  wheat  which  are  seeded  in  the  fall,  and 
hence  have  a longer  growing  season,  nearly  always  yield 
heavier,  plumper  grain,  carrying  a lower  percentage  of  protein 
and  generally  producing  flour  that  is  not  so  “strong,”  as  that 
from  spring-sown  varieties  grown  in  the  same  locality.  There 
has,  however,  been  a very  extended  controversy  as  to  whether 
these  differences  were  true  “varietal”  characters,  or  simply 
due  to  the  different  environmental  conditions  during  the 
growth  of  the  fall-sown  and  spring-sown  grain. 

Prior  to  our  work,  it  seemed  impossible  to  get  definite  ex- 
perimental evidence  on  this  matter;  since,  in  most  wheat- 
growing districts,  spring  varieties  of  wheats  will  not  live 
through  the  winter  if  seeded  in  the  fall,  and  fall  varieties  which 
are  hardy  enough  to  live  through  the  winter  will  not  head  out 
and  produce  seed  if  sown  in  the  spring.  In  many  of  the  wheat- 
growing sections  of  this  State,  however,  it  is  quite  a common 
practice,  because  of  the  mildness  of  the  winter  weather,  to 
seed  the  same  variety  of  wheat  both  in  the  fall  ard  in  the 
spring.  In  the  course  of  our  investigations,  we  secured  a con- 
siderable number  of  samples  of  such  grain.  In  several  cases, 
where  the  general  field  had  been  seeded  in  the  fall,  certain 
small  areas  which  showed  a very  thin  stand  in  the  spring  had 


"Loc.  cit.  pages  105-111. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


35 


been  plowed  up  and  reseeded  v.dth  tiie  same  seed,  in  the  early 
spring;  at  harvest  time,  these  fields  are  allowd  to  stand  until 
the  spring-grown  grain  matures,  before  cutting,  so  that  the 
samples  which  came  in  were  of  plump,  mature  grain  in  each 
case.  In  a number  of  other  instances,  samples  were  secured 
from  the  experimental  plots  of  this  Station,  where  the  same 
seed  had  been  sown  in  both  fall  and  spring  in  adjacent  plots, 
in  order  to  insure  a quantity  of  some  particular  strain  of  some 
variety  for  some  special  purpose.  In  all  such  cases,  the  same 
seed  was  used,  planted  on  uniform  soil  and  harvested  when 
mature.  The  only  variable  would  be,  therefore,  the  length  of 
the  growing  season,  as  influenced  by  the  factors  which  deter- 
mine at  what  stage  in  the  life-history  of  the  wheat  it  shall 
mature  and  ripen  its  seeds,  whatever  those  factors  may  be. 


Table  5 — Effect  of  Fall  vs.  Spring  Seeding  of  the  Same 
Variety  of  Wheat 


Crop 

Grown 

Percentage  of  Protein 

Variety 

of 

at 

Fall  Seeding 

Spring  Seeding 

Little  Club 

1905 

Dayton 

9.38 

10.63 

Durum 

1905 

Quincy 

14.44 

17.86 

Argentine 

1905 

Quincy 

14.94 

18.10 

Gharnovka 

1905 

Quincy 

13.29 

15.39 

Red  Fife 

1906 

Quincy 

13.23 

15.00 

Bluestem 

1907 

Ritzville 

12.85 

14.62 

Bluestem 

1908 

Pullman 

14.04 

15.13 

Bluestem 

1908 

Pullman 

13.71 

15.81 

Bluestem 

1908 

Pullman 

14.04 

16.80 

Bluestem 

1908 

Ritzville 

15.83 

17.52 

Bluestem 

1908 

Ritzville 

15.98 

16.43 

Argentine 

1908 

Ritzville 

18.84 

20.21 

Average 

14.29 

16.12 

The  results  of  the  analyses  of  several  such  pairs  of  sam- 
ples are  shown  in  Table  5.  These  results  indicate  that  the  varia- 
tions in  composition  of  same  variety  when  given  a longer  or 
shorter  growing  season  are  likely  to  be  fully  as  great,  or  even 
greater  than  the  differences  in  composition  of  fall  or  spring 
sown  grain  of  different  varieties  grown  in  the  same  locality. 
This  fact  may  perhaps  be  made  more  easily  apparent  by  ref- 
erence to  the  table  (Table  6)  showing  the  average  protein 
content  of  the  spring  and  fall  sown  varieties  of  this  State  for 


36 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


the  five-year  period  of  our  investigations,  as  copied  from  our 
Bulletin  No.  100.  It  will  bet  noted  that  the  spring-sown 
varieties  are  invariably  lower  in  average  protein  content.  Lit- 
tle Club,  a spring  wheat,  is  an  apparent  exception,  but  this  is 
a very  hardy  variety,  and  is  commonly  seeded  in  the  fall  in 
this  State,  and  more  than  half  the  samples  which  were  ana- 
lyzed came  from  fall-sown  wheat. 

Table  6 — Average  Composition  of  Leading  Varieties  of  Wheats 


Average  Average 

No.  of  Moisture  Protein 

Variety  Samples  per  cent  per  cent 

Macaroni  13  9.58  12.86 

Bluestem  126  9.97  12.44 

Red  Allen  17  11.05  12.04 

.Tones’  Winter  Fife 43  9.70  11.61 

Turkey  Red  55  9.43  11.27 

Little  Club  65  1 0.08  10.75 

Fortyfold  27  10.04  10.74 

Red  Russian  16  9.85  9.76 


It  appears,  from  these  results,  that  the  differences  in  com- 
position between  fall-sown  and  spring-sown  wheats  are  not 
due  to  actual  differences  in  the  habit  of  growth  and  develop- 
ment of  the  different  varieties,  so-called  ^‘varietal  characters,” 
l)ut  to  the  elongation  or  shortening  of  the  growth  period  by  the 
planting  at  different  seasons  of  the  year. 

Effect  of  Early  vs.  Late  Spring  Seeding. 

It  was  the  writer’s  intention  to  continue  the  above  study, 
.by  making  a comparison  of  the  effect  upon  the  length  of  the 
growing  season  and  the  composition  of  the  wheat  of  early  vs. 
late  spring  seeding,  but  a change  in  the  staff  of  workers  of 
the  Division  of  Crop  Production  of  the  Station  caused  the 
matter  to  be  overlooked  at  the  time  and  it  has  never  been 
undertaken  since. 

Effect  of  Early  vs.  Late  Harvesting  of  the  Crop. 

The  (piestion  of  the  effect  upon  the  composition  of  the 
grain  of  varying  the  date  and  consequent  stage  of  maturity  at 
which  the  crop  is  harvested  has  received  considerable  attention 
from  investigators,  manufacturers  of  harvesting  machinery, 
and  millers.  The  opinions  and  conclusions  of  most  of  the 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


37 


scientific  investigators  who  have  studied  this  problem  are 
briefly  reviewed  on  pages  6 to  12  inclusive  of  this  report. 

The  importance  of  this  matter  to  manufacturers  of  different 
types  of  harvesting  machinery  for  use  in  the  Pacific  Coast 
regions,  where  summer  weather  conditions  are  such  as  to  per- 
mit the  wheat  grower  to  choose  for  himself  the  method  and 
manner  of  harvesting  the  crop,  led  to  a demand  for  information 
as  to  the  effect  upon  the  milling  and  flour-making  ciuality  of 
allowing  the  wheat  to  come  to  full  maturity  before  harvesting 
with  the  various  methods  of  threshing  the  grain  at  the  same 
operation  by  which  it  is  cut,  as  contrasted  with  cutting  the 
grain  a little  before  it  is  ripe,  with  a binder,  and  permitting 
it  to  '‘cure”  in  the  shock  or  stack  or  both.  A study  of  this 
matter,  both  from  the  standpoint  of  cost  of  harvesting  and  of 
effect  upon  the  milling  quality  of  the  wheat,  was,  therefore, 
assigned  to  Joseph  W.  Brislawn,  a senior  in  the  College,  of  the 
class  of  1907,  as  a thesis  subject.  The  results  of  his  investiga- 
tions, in  the  form  of  a thesis’^  are  on  file  in  the  College  library. 
That  part  of  his  work  which  dealt  with  the  effect  of  the  dif- 
ferent methods  of  harvesting  consisted  in  the  collection  of  a 
considerable  number  of  samples  of  wheat,  of  the  crop  of  1906, 
which  had  been  harvested  in  the  same  locality  by  each  of  the 
three  following  methods  of  harvesting:  (1)  cut  with  a binder 
and  threshed  from  the  stack  or  shock,  (2)  cut  with  a combined 
harvester  and  thresher,  and  (3)  cut  with  a header  and  hauled 
directly  to  the  thresher.  These  samples  were  analyzed,  milled 
and  their  milling  products  tested  in  the  Station  laboratories, 
with  the  results  shown  in  Table  7. 

The  results  show  a considerable  difference  in  composition, 
resulting  from  the  different  methods  of  harvesting,  Mr.  Bris- 
lawn, in  commenting  upon  these  results,  says  “The  differences 
doubtless  would  have  been  greater  but  for  the  fact  that  such 
large  acreages  were  harvested  in  each  field  that  it  was  im- 
possible to  get  all  the  grain  cut  just  at  the  desired  stage  of 

“A  Comparison  of  Harvesting  Methods  and  Their  Effect  on 
the  Milling  Qualities  of  Wheat,”  a thesis  presented  to  the  Faculty 
of  the  State  College  of  Washington  by  a candidate  for  the  degree 
of  Bachelor  of  Science  in  Agriculture. 


.'38 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


growth  in  each  case,  the  tendency  being  for  all  the  grain  to 
become  riper  than  was  planned  before  it  could  be  harvested.’’ 

Table  7. — Effect  of  Different  Methods  of  Harvesting  Wheat 
Upon  the  Milling  Qualities  of  the  Grain 


Pro-  Pro-  Gluten  Test 
te  n tein  of  Flour 


Locality  Variety  Method  of  Harvesting  Flour 


Almira  Bluestem  Binder 


al3.70bl2.ll  34.00  11.59 


Almira  Bluestem  Combined  Harvester  13.18  11.30  32.00  11.55 

Almira  Bluestem  Header  and  Thresher  11.86  10.57  27.10  9.85 

Sprague  Bluestem  Combined  Harvester  14.10  12.40  33.29  11.87 

.Sprague  Bluestem  Header  and  Thresher  13.34  10.06  28.00  9.99 

Almota  Red  Rus.  Binder  12.01  11.27  32.00  10.01 

,Almota  Red.  Rus.  Combined  Harvester  10.37  9.29  22.65  8.65 

_Pullman  Lit.  Club  Binder  11.23  26.51  10.85 

Pullman  Lit.  Club  Header  and  Thresher  10.16  8.90  22.39  7.95 

..a  Average  of  three  or  four  samples  analyzed  separately  in  each  case, 
b Same  samples  made  into  composites  for  milling  tests. 

It  is  apparent,  therefore,  that  shortening  the  development 
period  of  grain,  by  harvesting  it  before  it  is  quite  ripe,  increases 
the  proportion  of  protein  in  the  wheat  and  of  gluten  in  the 
flour.  Lyon^®,  having  shown  that  the  quality  of  the  gluten  is 
not  materially  affected  by  this  shortening  of  the  maturation 
period,  it  is  the  obvious  conclusion  that  binder-cut  grain  is  of 
somewhat  higher  milling  quality,  than  is  the  same  grain  if 
allowed  to  mature  in  the  field  before  cutting. 

It  has  been  supposed  by  most  writers  on  this  subject  that 
wheat  when  cut  with  a binder  before  it  is  quite  ripe,  will  con- 
tinue to  translocate  the  food  material  contained  in  its  stems 
and  leaves  to  the  kernels  while  “curing”  in  the  shock.  The 
results  here  reported  fail  to  confirm  this  view.  Investigations 
have  been  undertaken  by  Geo.  A.  Olson,  the  present  chemist  of 
this  Station,  to  ascertain  under  what  conditions  such  trans- 
location would  take  place,  and  whether  all  such  translocation 
.actually  ceases  when  the  grain  is  cut  and  shocked  under  ordi- 
nary field  conditions. 


®®Loc.  cit.,  page  119. 


INFLUENCE  OF  LENGTH  OF  PERIOD  OF  KERNEL- 

FORMATION 


Frequent  references  have  already  been  made  in  this  report 
to  the  general  opinion  that  the  length  of  the  growing  season 
has  a very  important  effect  upon  the  composition  of  the  result- 
ant grain.  The  preceding  section  has  been  devoted  to  our  pre- 
liminary experimental  studies  of  this  effect.  Early  in  the 
progress  of  these  investigations  the  writer  became  convinced 
that  it  was  not  the  length  of  the  total  growing  period,  but  only 
that  portion  of  it  during  which  the  kernels  are  formed,  which 
influences  the  final  composition  of  the  grain.  Two  different 
considerations  led  to  the  same  conclusion.  There  was,  first, 
the  understanding  among  most  plant  physiologists  that  pro- 
tein formation  is  most  active  during  the  earlier  periods  of 
plant  growth,  and  that  during  seed-formation  the  process  is 
chiefly  that  of  translocation  of  the  nitrogenous  matter  already 
formed  into  the  kernel;  while  carbohydrate  production  would 
bo  likely  to  continue  in  active  progress  so  long  as  any  part  of 
the  plant  remains  green,  i.  e.,  contains  active  chlorophyll.  The 
work  of  Deherain  and  Dupont®"  showed  that  the  upper  part 
of  the  stems  of  wheat  are  active  in  carbohydrate-formation 
while  the  kernels  are  being  filled.  Cobb”,  as  a result  of  his 
“biological  analysis’’  of  wheat,  has  shown  that  the  “flour 
cells”  of  the  endosperm  which  are  probably  the  last  to  be 
filled  in  with  starch  are  relatively  richest  in  carbohydrates 
and  lowest  in  protein  content.  Even  Brenchley  and  Hall’s  con- 
ception that  each  plant  “continually  moves  into  the  grain 
uniform  material  * * * ^ possessing  always  that  same  ratio 
of  nitrogenous  to  non-nitrogenous  materials”  (see  page  12) 
would  lead  to  the  same  general  conclusion,  since  their  own 
analytical  data  indicate  that  the  material  moved  into  the 
kernel  is  relatively  much  higher  in  carbohydrates  than  the 
original  “mould”  of  the  endosperm.  All  of  these  opinions 
lead  to  the  same  general  conclusion  that  if  the  period  of 

®'’Ann.  Agronomique,  28,  (1902)  522. 

®^Agr.  Gaz.  New  So.  Wales,  13,  (1902)  74-90. 


40 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


kernel-formation  should  l)e  prolonged  by  any  change  of  con- 
ditions, this  would  permit  a greater  filling  in  of  materials 
richer  in  carbohydrates  than  that  first  built  into  the  structure 
of  the  kernel,  and,  therefore,  reduce  the  proportion  of  nitro- 
genous material  and  produce  a softer”  grain. 

Again,  there  was  the  observed  fact  that  in  some  seasons 
the  difference  l)etween  the  composition  of  fall-sown  grain, 
with  its  long  growing  period,  and  spring-sown  grain,  with 
much  shorter  total  growing  time,  was  much  less  than  in  other 
seasons,  indicating  to  the  writer  that  it  was  the  final  rapidity 
of  formation  and  ripening  of  the  kernel  which  made  the  char- 
acteristic difference  in  composition,  rather  than  the  total  time 
of  development  from  germination  to  matured  seed. 

Two  methods  of  study  of  this  problem  suggested  them- 
selves: first,  a comparison  of  the  composition  of  grain  maturing 
at  different  seasons  of  the  summer  with  the  climatic  condi- 
tions at  those  times,  over  a period  of  years  having  different 
harvest  weather  conditions ; and,  second,  an  actual  comparison 
of  the  number  of  elapsed  days  during  the  period  of  kernel- 
formation  with  the  resulting  composition  of  the  grain.  The 
report  of  our  investigations  by  both  of  these  methods  follows. 

Effect  of  Reversal  of  Climatic  Conditions  During  Harvest 
Upon  Relative  Composition  of  Fall-Sown  and 
Spring-Sown  Grain 

In  Part  II.  of  this  report,  there  will  be  found  a discussion 
of  our  four  years’  line-selection  work  with  four  varieties  of 
wheat,  two  of  them  (Jones’  Fife  and  Red  Russian)  being  true 
fall  wheats,  and  the  other  two  (Bluestem  and  Little  Club) 
spring  varieties,  sowed,  therefore,  at  those  seasons  of  each  year. 
Xormally,  the  spring  varieties,  when  analyzed  for  the  selec- 
tions for  high  and  low  nitrogen,  showed  considerably  higher 
figures  for  percentages  of  nitrogen  than  the  fall  varieties.  But 
Ihe  harvest  weather  of  ]0d9  was  very  unusual,  there  being  a 
short  period  of  hot,  dry  weather  in  the  latter  part  of  June, 
during  which  the  winter  wheats  ripened  up  rapidly,  followed 
by  a period  of  unusually  cool,  damp  weather,  which  resulted 
in  a very  slow  ripening  of  the  spring-sown  Avheats.  Our 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


41 


analyses  for  this  year  showed  the  fall-sown  wheats  to  be  con- 
siderably richer  in  protein,  or  higher  in  percentage  of  nitrogen, 
than  the  spring-sown  varieties.  The  following  year,  with  nor- 
mal summer  weather,  the  relative  composition  of  fall-  and 
spring-sown  varieties  became  normal  once  more.  The  actual 
effect  of  this  change  in  weather  conditions  upon  the  per- 
centage of  nitrogen  in  the  grain  is  shown  in  Table  8. 

Table  8. — Effect  of  Summer  Weather  Conditions  Upon  Com- 
position of  Wheat 


Deviations  from  Xormal — 
June — 

Mean  temperature 
Total  rainfall 
July — 

IMean  temperature 
Total  rainfall 


1908 

— 1.8  deg. 
— 1.22  in. 


-4-3.1  deg. 
-4-0.16  in. 


1909 

— 1.0  deg. 
— 0.58  in. 

— 2.9  deg. 
-j-1.70  in. 


1910 

— 2.0  deg. 
— 1.40  in. 

-1-2.8  deg. 
— 0.02  in. 


Average  Nitivigen  Content — 


3 O 

PD  . 

H..  03 

B o 

^ ■ 

CD 

B O 

pD  . 

2 ^ 

O) 

'<  o 

W l-h 

ro 

73 

o o 
crq  o 
<D  P 

B ^ 

^ o 

73  Ms 

CO 

U1 

o o 

a 

^ O 

73  l-h 

03 

73 

° S 

^ B 
B ^ 

Fall  Varieties — ■ 


Red  Russian  

. . .160 

2.449 

200 

1.967 

200 

2.602 

Jones’  Fife  

...  160 

1.987 

160 

1.705 

200 

2.403 

Spring  Varieties — • 

Bluestem  

. . .200 

2.962 

160 

1.812 

100 

2.705 

Little  Club  

180 

2.834 

160 

1.663 

200 

2.775 

Average  Weight  of  Kernel — 

Fall  Varieties — No. 

gms. 

No. 

gms. 

No. 

gms. 

Red  Russian  

. . .160 

.0321 

200 

.0465 

200 

.0360 

Jones’  Fife  

...  160 

.0319 

160 

.0422 

200 

.0379 

Spring  Varieties — 

Bluestem  

...  160 

.0281 

160 

.0514 

100 

.0310 

Little  Club  

...  180 

.0205 

160 

.0361 

200 

.0189 

Throughout  all  the  years  of  the  experiment,  these  wheats 
were  planted  in  rows  in  the  cereal  nursery  plots,  and  given 
uniform,  good  cultivation.  The  differences  in  rapidity  of 
ripening  induced  by  the  change  in  weather  conditions  are 
unquestionably  the  cause  of  the  reversal  of  type,  so  far  as 
weight  of  kernel  and  nitrogen-content ' are  concerned,  of  the 
fall-  and  spring-sown  varieties.  This  unusual  occurrence, 
therefore,  afforded  excellent  evidence  that  it  is  the  length  of 
the  period  of  kernel-formation  rather  than  that  of  the  whole 
growth-period,  which  determines  the  composition  of  the  grain. 


42  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

Further,  it  indicates  that  the  usual  lower  protein  content  of 
fall-sown  varieties  is  not  a “variety”  difference  in  .the  sense 
that  the  variety  itself  has  a tendency  to  produce  high-  or  low- 
nitrogen  grain,  but  is  due  to  the  fact  that  fall-sown  wheats 
usually  mature  earlier  in  the  summer,  at  a time  when  climatic 
conditions  permit  a longer  period  of  kernel-formation,  than 
have  the  spring-sown  varieties  which  develop  later  in  the 
summer. 

Correlation  of  Number  of  Days  of  Kernel-Formation  With 
Composition  of  Resultant  Grain 

The  most  exact  solution  of  the  problem  of  the  influence  of 
the  length  of  time  of  kernel-formation  upon  the  composition 
of  the  wheat  would,  of  course,  consist  in  an  experimental  study 
of  the  problem  in  the  field.  The  difficulty  had  been,  however, 
to  definitely  measure  the  length  of  time  of  kernel-formation 
in  different  varieties  or  strains  of  wheat  grown  under  condi- 
tions otherwise  identical.  Our  studies  of  the  nitrogen  content 
of  the  kernels  from  different  spikes  of  wheat  growing  on  the 
same  plant,  and  on  adjacent  plants  in  the  same  row,  as 
reported  in  Bulletin  No.  102  of  this  Station,  having  shown  a 
wide  variation  in  composition,  and  our  field  observations  hav- 
ing convinced  us  that  it  would  be  possible  to  get  a fairly 
exact  measure  of  the  period  of  kernel-formation  of  such  spikes, 
it  seemed  that  a satisfactory  solution  of  the  problem  might  be 
obtained  from  a study  of  this  correlation  by  using  different 
spikes  of  wheat  in  the  same  field.  This  study  was  accordingly 
assigned  as  a thesis  subject  to  Edward  Benton  Stookey,  a 
senior  in  the  college,  of  the  class  of  1912.  His  work  on  this 
problem  is  reported  in  full  detail  in  his  thesis®*,  and  will  be 
only  briefly  summarized  here. 

About  the  middle  of  June,  1911,  twelve  plants  of  wheat, 
of  a variety  which  tillers  very  extensively,  namely.  Sta- 
tion Hybrid  No.  143,  were  selected  in  the  college  nursery  plots, 
six  from  one  row  and  six  from  another  row  about  fifteen  feet 

®-  “The  Blossoming  of  Wheat  and  the  Effect  of  the  Length  of 
the  Ripening  Period  upon  its  Nitrogen  Content.”  A thesis  submit- 
ted to  the  faculty  of  the  State  College  of  Washington,  for  the 
degree  of  Bachelor  of  Science  in  Agriculture. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  43 

distant.  The  plants  in  the  first  row  were  designated  by  the 
lettersA,  B,  C,  D,  E,  and  F,  and  those  in  the  second  row  by 
the  letters  U,  V,  W,  X,  Y,  and  Z,  respectively.  Prior  to  the 
appearance  of  any  bloom,  each  stem  of  each  plant  which 
appeared  likely  to  develop  a spike,  or  head,  was  tagged,  using 
the  ordinary  price-marking  tags.  Each  stem  of  each  plant 
was  numbered  on  the  tags  as  Al,  A2,  A3 ; Bl,  B2,  B3,  etc.,  etc. 
The  plots  were  visited  daily,  and  from  the  time  of  the  appear- 
ance of  the  first  bloom  until  the  heads  were  all  fully  ripe,  care- 
ful record  was  kept  of  the  development  of  each  head  from  the 
time  its  first  blossom  appeared  until  it  was  ripe  enough  to 
harvest.  Not  quite  all  of  the  tagged  stems  finally  produced 
spikes,  but  a total  of  217  spikes  actually  developed  on  the 
twelve  selected  plants  and  the  data  for  these  were  recorded. 
It  was  easy  to  determine  the  exact  day  of  first  bloom  in 
each  case,  as  the  first  appearance  of  anthers  was  found  to 
precede  fertilization  by  only  a few  hours.  In  order  to  be 
able  to  determine  when  the  heads  were  ripe,  Mr.  Stookey  made 
a series  of  studies  of  the  loss  in  moisture  from  other  heads 
than  those  under  investigation,  as  they  approached  maturity, 
and  found  that  the  kernels  in  these  heads  reached  a minimum 
moisture  content  of  six  per  cent  to  eight  per  cent  at  the  time 
when  the  first  node  of  the  stem  became  well  shrivelled,  and 
the  stem  itself  brittle  enough  to  crack  when  given  a slight 
pressure  between  the  fingers.  In  this  way,  the  exact  number 
of  elapsed  days  between  fertilization  and  final  ripening  of 
each  head  was  secured. 

During  the  gathering  of  these  field  notes,  observations  were 
also  made  of  the  method  and  rate  of  development  of  the  ker- 
nels in  different  parts  of  each  individual  spike. 

As  each  spike  ripened,  it  was  cut  from  the  stem  and  pre- 
served in  an  envelope  numbered  to  correspond  with  the  tag  on 
the  stem.  These  were  then  preserved  until  the  following 
December ; when  each  head  was  threshed  out  by  hand,  and  the 
number  of  kernels  counted  and  recorded.  This  work  was  done 
by  another  student,  who  had  no  knowledge  of  the  purpose  of 
the  work.  The  counted  kernels  were  then  given  to  the  Ex- 
periment Station  Chemist,  who  determined  their  total  weight 


44  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

and  made  nitrogen  determinations  on  each  lot.  This  analysis 
was  made  with  no  knowledge  of  each  individual  sample  other 
than  the  number  which  accompanied  it.  The  three  sets  of 
data,  namely,  the  length  of  the  period  of  formation,  the  num- 
ber of  kernels  per  spike,  and  the  weight  and  per  cent  of  nitro- 
gen in  the  grain  from  each  spike,  were,  therefore,  secured  by 
three  independent  workers,  the  second  and  third  of  whom  did 
not  know  the  significance  of  the  sample  numbering. 

The  following  brief  notes  of  the  results  of  Mr.  Stookey’s 
field  notes  and  studies  may  not  be  out  of  place  in  this  report : 

The  217  spikes  studied  showed  an  extreme  variation  in  period 
of  kernel  development  of  from  twenty  to  forty-three  days.  Kernels 
from  those  spikes  wh'ch  matured  in  less  than  twenty-eight  days 
were  badly  shrivelled,  but  plump,  well  developed  kernels  came  from 
spikes  whose  length  of  development  period  varied  as  much  as  fif- 
teen days. 

The  first  heads  to  blossom  usually  had  the  longest  development 
period.  These  heads  were  usually  borne  on  the  tallest  straws  of 
the  plant. 

The  outer  glumes  of  the  middle  part  of  each  spike  usually 
blossom  first.  The  blossoming  continues  in  the  outer  glumes  of  the 
sp'kelets,  from  the  middle  of  the  spike  toward  the  tip  and  butt, 
then  starts  again  at  the  middle  spikelets,  in  the  inner  glumes,  and 
again  goes  in  both  directions. 

The  kernels  in  the  different  glumes  ripen  in  practically  the 
same  order  as  they  blossom,  so  that  the  variat'on  in  length  of 
period  of  kernel-formation  in  the  different  glumes,  is  not  so  great 
as  that  between  different  spikes  of  the  same  plant.  This  observa- 
tion agrees  with  the  variations  in  composifon  of  the  kernels  from 
different  parts  of  the  same  plant,  as  found  by  the  writer  and 
reported  in  Bulletin  No.  102. 

With  plants  wh'ch  tiller  so  extensively  as  those  used  in  this 
study,  the  relationship  between  length  of  straw  and  composition  of 
kernel  is  not  nearly  so  pronounced  as  was  found  by  the  writer  in 
his  previous  study  of  this  matter,  reported  in  Bulletin  No.  102. 

The  analytical  data  showing  the  relation  between  the  length 
of  development  period  and  the  composition  of  the  grain  from 
each  of  the  heads  studied,  are  recorded  in  Mr.  Stookey’s  thesis, 
which  is  on  file  in  the  library  of  the  State  College  of  Wash- 
ington. They  are  far  too  voluminous  to  be  repeated  here,  but 
are  graphically  represented  in  the  accompanying  chart. 


CHART  SHOWING  RELATION  OF  LENGTH  OF  RIPENING  PERIOD 

Tl 

D 1 

PERCENTAGE  OF  NITROGEN  AND  WEIGHT  OF  KERNELS  OF  WHEAT  . 

. : 

riafM  M <*.' 

, r-  . Plant  U 

Pliirrt  X 

■ — •"  ■ 

Plant  C 

, « i 1 1 1 . 

Plant  X 

• ■ j,  , 

• • w 

. . 

'''  1.,-,; 

/’  ■ 

vimau'  £ 'y  1 

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Plant  V 

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IVi'i  lll-J 

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D 

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Plant  Z i<M.  \ / 

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46  Washington  Ag^cultural  Experiment  Station 

In  this  chart,  the  data  for  each  plant  are  presented  in  a 
series  of  three  superimposed  broken  lines.  The  data  for  each 
head  are  indicated  by  three  points  on  the  same  vertical  line, 
the  significance  of  each  point  being  indicated  by  the  legend 
at  the  top  of  the  chart  and  the  figures  at  the  left  of  the  dia- 
gram for  each  plant.  When  it  is  borne  in  mind  that  the  data 
for  each  of  the  three  lines  were  obtained  independently,  by 
three  separate  workers,  each  having  no  knowledge  of  the 
other’s  results,  the  similarity  of  the  three  curves  for  each  plant 
is  not  only  striking,  but  very  remarkable.  There  are  scarcely 
a dozen  individual  heads  out  of  the  whole  217  examined  for 
which  the  curves  do  not  run  in  the  same  direction.  This  very 
clearly  establishes  the  following  facts  concerning  the  relation- 
ships which  were  under  investigation,  namely: 

The  average  weight  of  kernel  varies  directly  with  the  length 
of  development  period. 

The  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  grain  varies  inversely 
with  the  length  of  this  period. 

The  length  of  this  period  is  the  determining  factor  in  the 
final  composition  of  the  grain. 

Protein-Starch  Development  During  Kernel-Formation 

Deherain  and  Dupont,  in  the  article  previously  referred  to, 
report  the  results  of  careful  studies  of  the  functioning  of  both 
the  leaves  and  the  upper  parts  of  the  stems  of  the  wheat  plant, 
during  the  period  when  kernels  are  being  formed.  Two 
methods  of  investigation  were  used.  First,  the  separate  parts 
of  the  plant  were  sealed  up  in  bell  jars,  which  were  then  ex- 
posed to  sunlight,  and  the  transpiration-coefficient  determined. 
The  figures  thus  obtained,  in  only  a limited  number  of  trials, 
led  the  writers  to  conclude  that  it  is  in  the  stems  of  the  plant 
rather  than  its  leaves  that  the  manufacture  of  carbohydrates 
takes  place,  at  least  during  this  latter  part  of  the  plant’s  life. 
Next,  they  removed  the  spikes  from  a considerable  number  of 
plants  growing  in  a uniform  field.  The  next  day  the 
“mutilated”  stems  were  harvested,  together  with  an  equal 
number  of  entire  plants.  The  stems  from  which  the  heads  had 
been  removed,  upon  analysis,  showed  carbohydrates  equal  to 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  47 

5.94  per  cent  of  the  dry  matter,  while  similar  stems  on  which 
the  heads  remained  contained  only  1.63  per  cent  of  carbo- 
hydrates. The  writers  assume  that  the  additional  carbohy- 
drates in  the  stems  without  heads  were  likewise  formed  in  the 
stems  with  heads  but  in  the  latter  ease  were  translocated  to 
the  kernels  in  the  heads.  They  argue  from  this  that  so  long 
as  the  upper  stems  remain  green,  they  serve  in  the  same  way 
as  do  the  leaves  of  other  plants  and  elaborate  the  starch  which 
later  fills  out  the  kernel.  According  to  this  view,  the  longer 
these  stems  remain  green  the  greater  will  be  the  elaboration 
of  carbohydrates  and  the  richer  will  be  the  percentage  of 
starch  in  the  resultant  grain. 

This  view  is  almost  directly  the  opposite  to  the  conclu- 
sions reached  by  Brenchley  and  Hall  (see  page  12)  that  the 
ratio  of  non-nitrogenous  to  nitrogenous  matter  entering  the 
kernel  is  practically  uniform  throughout  the  filling  in  the 
endosperm. 

On  account  of  this  conflict  of  conclusions,  the  writer  in- 
augurated, during  his  work  at  the  University  of  Nebraska 
Summer  School,  in  the  summer  of  1912,  a careful  and  thorough 
study  of  the  physiological  problem  presented  by  Deherain  and 
Dupont.  A large  number  of  plants  were  stripped  of  their 
leaves,  from  some  of  these  as  well  as  from  others  still 
bearing  their  leaves  the  heads  were  removed,  the  plants  thus 
“mutilated”  in  various  ways  were  allowed  to  stand  for  sev- 
eral days,  and  samples  from  each  kind  of  plant  and  from 
unmutilated  check  plants  were  harvested  at  different  succes- 
sive periods.  In  another  plot,  halves  of  all  the  spikes  on  a 
considerable  number  of  plants  were  removed;  from  a part 
of  these  plants  the  leaves  were  stripped  off,  leaving  only  the 
upper  stems  to  function  in  carbohydrate  manufacture.  The 
half-heads  were  harvested  at  different  successive  dates.  The 
material  thus  collected  is  now  in  process  of  analysis.  Results 
can  not,  therefore,  be  reported  at  this  time.  It  is  believed, 
however,  that  this  method  of  investigation  will  afford  con- 
firmatory physiological  explanation  for  the  facts  established 
by  the  investigations  made  by  Mr.  Stookey,  under  the  writer’s 
direction. 


INFLUENCE  OF  TRANSFER  OF  SEED 


The  question  as  to  whether  varieties  of  wheat  will  “run 
out”  if  seeded  continuously  on  the  same  land,  and  of  the  de- 
sirability of  new  seed  occasionally  from  another  locality,  has 
meen  a mooted  one  ever  since  the  practice  was  first  recom- 
mended by  early  Roman  writers.  There  exists  in  the  minds 
of  many  practical  wheat  growers  a well-fixed  idea  that  an 
occasional  change  of  seed  gives  good  results.  This  idea,  how- 
ever, is  probably  based  upon  opinion  rather  than  evidence, 
since  the  weight  of  evidence  which  has  been  published  in 
agricultural  literature  is  very  clearly  in  favor  of  locally-grown 
seed.  Practically  all  the  arguments  upon  this  subject  have  to 
do  with  the  yield  of  the  crop  rather  than  the  composition  of 
the  grain.  A single  possible  exception  is  in  the  case  of  the 
practice  of  securing  new  stocks  of  Turkey  Red  wheat  from 
Alberta  for  seeding  in  Kansas,  which  has  been  recommended 
by  the  Kansas  Experiment  Station"'. 

The  most  careful  investigations  of  this  subject  are  those 
which  have  been  conducted  by  the  Office  of  Cereal  Investiga- 
tions, of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  United  States  Depart- 
ment of  Agriculture,  under  the  project  known  as  “Triangular 
Experiments  in  Growing  Cereals,”  the  results  of  which,  how- 
ever, have  not  yet  been  published,  as  far  as  the  writer  is 
aware ; and  the  work  of  LaCTerc,  in  co-operation  with  the 
California  Experiment  Station,  the  conclusions  from  which 
have  already  been  quoted  in  this  report  (see  pages 
19,  20,  22,  and  23). 

Our  own  investigations  of  this  subject  began  in  1906.  Our 
studies  of  the  composition  of  the  samples  of  wheat  of  the  crop 
of  1905,  as  reported  in  Bulletin  No.  84,  having  shown  a wide 
variation  in  composition  in  different  samples  of  the  same  vari- 
ety of  wheat,  we  determined  to  grow  a considerable  number 
of  these  wheats  of  variable  composition  for  three  successive 
years,  side  by  side,  in  nursery  rows  on  our  experimental  farms 
at  Pullman,  Ritzville,  and  Quincy.  The  first  named  locality 
represents  the  region  of  heaviest  rainfall  in  the  Avheat  belt  of 
Eastern  AVashington,  having  an  average  annual  precipitation 

«'Kas.  Exp.  Sta.  Circ.  No.  3. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


49 


of  22  inches.  Kitzville  is  in  a locality  of  much  lighter  rainfall, 
with  an  average  annual  precipitation  of  12  inches ; while 
Quinc}^  is  on  the  extreme  outer  limit  of  rainfall  for  wheat  pro- 
duction without  irrigation,  its  precipitation  for  the  past  ten 
years  having  averaged  only  a little  over  8 inches  per 
annum. 

It  was  thought  that,  since  the  variation  in  composition  of 
the  wheat  was  approximately  coincident  with  the  variation  in 
rainfall  in  the  localities  where  the  grain  was  grown,  these 
wheats  might  be  “acclimated”  to  a certain  rainfall  supply  and 
when  grown  side  by  side  in  regions  of  such  widely  varying 
moisture  supply,  might  show  the  effect  of  this  adaptation  to 
environment,  and  so  give  some  indication  of  the  desirability, 
or  otherwise,  of  using  local-grown  seed,  at  least  so  far  as  the 
composition  of  the  resultant  grain  is  concerned. 

Ten  samples  of  Bluestem,  and  three  each  of  Little  Club, 
Bed  Chaff  Club,  Jones’  Winter  Fife,  and  Turkey  Red,  were 
selected  for  the  experiment.  These  wheats  were  sown  in  rows 
at  each  of  the  localities  in  1906,  the  grain  harvested,  a portion 
of  it  saved  for  analyses,  and  the  balance  seeded  back  in  the 
same  locality  again  in  1907,  and  the  process  repeated,  the 
final  samples  being  harvested  in  1908.  The  fall  varieties  could 
not  be  seeded  until  the  fall  of  1906,  so  that  only  two  crops 
(1907  and  1908)  of  these  varieties  were  harvested,  while  the 
full  three  crops  of  spring  varieties  were  secured. 

The  complete  records  of  analyses  of  all  these  samples  are 
on  file  in  the  card  index  records  of  the  Station  Laboratory 
(see  cards  Nos.  1386-1107,  1511-1530,  2416-2429,  2455-2517, 
2546-2580,  3806-3860,  3952-3974,  and  3988-4012).  This  data 
would  be  too  voluminous  to  include  in  this  report,  but  the 
figures  for  the  protein  content  of  the  samples  of  Bluestem 
wheat,  at  each  locality,  for  the  three  years,  have  been  assem- 
bled and  are  presented  in  Table  9.  Occasional  samples  are 
missing  ])ecause  of  a failure  to  get  a satisfactory'  growth,  or 
some  other  accidental  cause,  but  the  data  are  sufficiently  com- 
plete to  show  any  relationship  which  might  exist.  ! The  facts 
with  reference  to  the  other  varieties  are  identical  with  those 
here  shown  to  hold  for  Bluestem,  so  that  their  omission,  in 


Table  9. — Composition  of  Wheat  Grown  Continuously  From  Seed  of  Varying  Composition, 

at  Different  Localities 


ca 

p o 

o£ 
00  ^ 
s <=< 

ai  a» 

o 


d 

di’oj 
O -t-> 

J-<  o 

o ti 


Ritzville 


CO  • CO  00  cq 

UO  • 05  iO 


iH  lO  CO  CO  05  CO  OO  "CO 
00  t- <X>  1-1  CD  CO  OO  • iH 

Quincy  .coioiococococo  -co 


C0iHC0U000O5'<tiO500'^ 
_ ,,  CD  00  iH  cq  CO  tH  O CO  00 

Pullman  tJ^^u^j^Jt^ooriJcDt^cD 


Ritzville 


LO  U5  t-  LO  UO  CD  • cq 
LO  CD  rH  05  00  00  C-  'CD 


cq  cq  CO  cq  cq  cq  cq 


Quincy. 


CD  05  CO  rJH  CO  tH  cq  *00 
Tti  o CD  O CD  iH  • 


rt<  lO  ID  lO 


d 

2 ® 
O g 

CD  Pk 
o 

05  ej 
iH  O) 

o 


iHCDt-t- 

Pullman*^'^. 

LO  CO  CO  05 


• lO  CO  o o 

• o t-  lo  cq 

« CO  O CO  Tl< 


o CO  cq  05  05  o t-  ’O  • 

Ritzville^  : 

I>  00  t- CO  CD  LO  *10  • 


t>  tH  CD  o LO  cq  o *00 

Quincy  ^s'^oocoioitico  *10 


10  Tt<  LO  LO  LO  LO  • TjH 


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CDCD00'!fCD00CDO5LO'^ 


d fl 

•pH  rt) 

sS) 
2 ^ 
p^pk 


d 

O ci 


o s 


OOCAiMt^COiOCOTi-COO 
oocqcDLOojoocqcD-'fLO 
CO  CO  cq  cq  t-H  iH  r-j  O O O'. 


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•id 


d ►"< 


■ 2 ^ S S 

OJO'-'^ndg.^rt 

ww0Qo*^;3;^njO'C5 


03  g ^ TO  C3  I ; w 


d o 


XJ  O 


•^OOr-f’^C<jtOCCC^CC 

Cqi*<OTHcoC<lOOTH 

OOt-t>t^OOOOOOt-l> 


1017  Goldendale 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  51 

order  to  shorten  the  table,  does  not  detract  from  its  value.. 

The  season  of  1906  was  a very  dry  one,  that  of  1907  was 
about  normal,  while  1908  was  slightly  drier  than  the  average. 
With  this  variety  of  conditions,  it  would  seem  that  if  the  dif- 
ferent samples  of  original  seed  were  in  any  way  particularly 
adapted  to  various  conditions  of  moisture  supply,  it  would 
have  been  easily  apparent  in  the  composition  of  the  samples 
which  were  analyzed.  A most  careful  study  of  the  figures, 
however,  has  failed  to  give  to  the  writer  any  evidence  what- 
ever of  any  such  adaptation.  It  was  thought  that  if  the 
samples  were  given  a relative  rank,  according  to  their  pro- 
tein content,  at  each  locality  in  each  year,  some  relationship 
might  appear.  This  was  done  and  the  result  is  shown  in 
Table  10. 

Table  10. — Relative  Rank  in  Different  Years  of  Grain  Grown 


From  Same  Seed,  in  Different  Localities 


Crop  of  1906 

Crop  of 

1907 

Crop  of  1908 

(Dry  Year) 

(Normal  Year) 

(Nearly  Normal 
Year) 

o 

O 

2 

jO 

2 

p 

p 

p. 

p;* 

p 

p 

<-► 

w 

p* 

B 

p' 

o 

N 

B 

p 

a 

N 

B 

p* 

o 

1 

p 

p 

'< 

p 

'< 

p 

'< 

p 

o 

p 

o 

p 

• 

O 

r, . . , 

4 

6 

3 

1 

7 

8 

3 

2 

2 

6 

2 

1 

5 

2 

7 

8 

7 

3.... 

3 

7 

2 

4 

8 

2 

9 

8 

3 

4 

9 

4 

8 

8 

4 

3 

5 

5 

5 

7 

1 

7 

3 

4 

4 

3 

4 

6 

2 

3 

4 

5 

5 

1 

4 

1 

7 

5 

5 

5 

6 

1 

6 

10 

1 

2 

8 

1 

7 

7 

9 

8 

8 

6 

3 

6 

1 

2 

6 

10 

. . .10 

2 

6 

So  far  as  the  writer  can  discover,  there  is  not  the  slightest 
evidence  of  any  relation  between  the  composition  of  the  re- 
sultant grain  and  that  of  the  original  seed,  either  in  the  direc- 
tion of  an  hereditary  tendency  to  high-  or  low-protein  con- 
tent, or  of  a consistent  effect  of  climatic  conditions  to  which 
the  seed  grain  may  have  been  supposed  to  have  become 
adapted  in  each  case.  It  would  appear,  therefore,  that  the 
composition  of  the  seed  grain  has  no  effect  whatever  upon  the 
composition  of  the  resultant  crop;  and,  further,  that  transfer 
of  seed  has  no  effect,  at  least  so  far  as  composition  of  the 
grain  is  concerned. 


PART  II. 


. . .i  i 1 

LINE  SELECTION  BREEDING  FOR  VARIATION  OF 
NITROGEN  CONTENT  OF  WHEAT 


Breeding  Wheat  for  Improvement  in  Composition 

Plant  breeding  is,  at  present,  one  of  the  very  important 
branches  of  agricultural  science.  As  applied  to  cereals,  par- 
ticularly to  wheat,  most  of  this  work  has  been  concerned  with 
' improvement  in  yielding  capacity,  however,  and  but  very  few 
attempts  have  been  made  to  change,  by  breeding,  the  quality 
or  composition  of  the  grain  itself.  This  is  undoubtedly  because 
of  the  fact  that  there  was  no  known  method  of  testing  the 
composition  of  the  seed  grain,  except  by  analysis,  which  would 
of  course  destroy  the  grain  itself,  leaving  no  tested  seed  avail- 
able for  propagation  purposes.  Recently,  however,  this  matter 
has  received  considerable  study,  the  results  of  which  may  be 
• briefly  reviewed,  as  follows: 

There  are  two  general  methods  of  breeding  which  are  open 
to  use  by  any  investigator  who  is  seeking  to  evolve  new  strains 
, of  plants.  There  are,  respectively,  the  selection  (or  line-selec- 
tion) method,  and  hybridization. 

In  the ‘first,  the  procedure  consists  in  choosing  some  indi- 
vidual plant  which  possesses  the  characteristic  which  it  is 
desired  to  develop  in  the  new  strain  in  a larger  degree  than 
1 its  felloW' 'plants,  grown  under  the  same  conditions,  as  a parent 
seed  ! stock.  In  simple  selection,  this  first  choosing  of 
‘'improved”  seed  constitutes  the  only  attempt  at  fixing  the 
desired* characteristics.  In  line-selection,  however,  tlie  progeny 
j from  the  . first  selection  is  carefully  studied  and  those  indi- 
viduals whicli  show  a tendency  to  develop  in  the  desired  direc- 
tion ahe  selected  out  for  use  as  seed  for  the  next  generation. 
This  process  ican  be  repeated  indefinitely^  so  long  as  improve- 
'i  ment  I ds!  obtained  or  until  the  desired  character  becomes 
•j‘.‘fiiedh’)iby:ftbe.  process  and  the  new  strain  or  variety  is  reaVly 
for  general  use.  i 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


53 


In  hybridization,  two  varieties,  each  possessing  some  desir- 
able characteristics  which  it  is  desired  to  combine  in  the  new 
variety,  are  artificially  cross-pollenated,  and  from  the  resulting 
progeny,  those  types  which  nearest  approach  to  the  ideal  which 
the  breeder  is  seeking  to  attain  are  selected,  as  foundation 
stock  for  the  new  variety,  and  all  other  types  rejected.  A 
complete  discussion  of  the  principles  underlying  such  hybridi- 
zation work,  and  of  the  probabilities  of  securing  and  “fixing” 
any  desired  tyi)e  would  be  out  of  place  in  this  report.  They 
have,  however,  been  very  fully  discussed  in  Bulletin  No.  89 
of  this  Experiment  Station,  which  was  prepared,  at  the  writer’s 
request,  by  Professor  W.  J.  Spillman. 

Hybridization  has  been  very  successfully  employed  by  a 
large  number  of  breeders  to  improve  the  yielding  capacity  of 
wheat.  Practically  the  only  reference  in  agricultural  litera- 
ture to  the  possibility  of  using  this  process  for  improvement 
in  the  quality  of  the  grain,  however,  is  the  controversy  concern- 
ing the  possibility  of  such  a result  from  hybridization  between 
Biffen,  Professor  of  Agricultural  Botany,  University  of  Cam- 
bridge, and  Saunders,  Cerealist  of  the  Central  Experimental 
Farm,  Ottawa,  Canada.  Biffen'’^,  as  a result  of  his  study  of 
the  Fi,  F2,  and  F^  generations  of  a single  cross  of  wheat,  had 
reached  the  conclusion  that,  although  the  difference  between 
“strong”  and  “weak”  grains  is  a very  “subtle”  one  and  diffi- 
cult to  measure  accurately,  yet  it  constitutes  a Mendelian  pair 
of  characters,  and  is,  hence,  capable  of  being  transferred,  to 
the  progeny  of  a hybridized  grain.  Based  upon  these  conclu- 
sions. Humphrey,  and  BiffeiT'*,  in  their  report  to  the  Home- 
GroAvn  Wheat  Committee,  cited  “strength”  as  a Mendelian 
character  which  might  be  fixed  in  new  strains,  or  varieties, 
by  careful  breeding.  In  the  meantime,  Saunders'^'’  had  been 
making  extended  studies  of  the  milling  qualities  of  Canadian 
• wheats,  including  both  standard  and  hybrid  varieties,  and  had 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  “AYhile  it  is  no  doubt  possil)le  that 
in  some  cases  a cross-bred  wheat  may  po.ssess  bakirtg  qualities 


Mour.  Ag.  ScL  1,  (1  905)  36-39. 

‘’■Jour.  Ag.  Sci.  2,  (1  907)  1-1  7. 

•’‘’Central  Exj).  Farm  Bull.  Xo.  57,  (1  907)  page  35. 


64  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

the  same  as  one  of  the  parents,  the  results  given  here  seem  to 
show  conclusively  that  baking  strength  is  not  a Mendelian 
character,  that  is  to  say,  is  not  always  inherited  from  one  or 
the  other  parent  in  pure  condition.”  Biffen”,  however,  criti- 
cizes Saunders’  conclusions  on  the  grounds  that  the  hybrid 
varieties  which  he  was  considering  were  themselves  heterozy- 
gotes and  hence  likely  to  result  in  uncertain  characters;  and 
cited  other  hybrid  varieties,  resulting  from  crossing  of  fixed 
types,  to  prove  his  contentions.  He  also  reported  extension  of 
his  own  studies  to  further  hybrids,  in  which  he  measured 
“strength”  and  “weakness”  by  three  different  physical  tests, 
namely,  chewing,  crushing,  and  comparison  of  translucency ; 
from  which  he  concluded  that  “There  can  be  little  doubt  that 
high-yielding  capacity  and  strength  can  be  obtained  in  combi- 
nation in  the  same  variety,  though  whether  high-  and  low- 
yield  capacity  segregate  at  the  F2  stage  * * * remains  to  be 
determined.”  Saunders®*  replied  to  the  criticisms  of  Biffen 
by  reviewing  in  detail  the  care  which  had  been  used  at  the 
Central  Experimental  Farms  to  secure  pure,  fixed  strains  for 
hybridization  work  and  presented  his  own  opinion  that  “at 
present  it  appears  that  absence  of  strength  is  due  to  various 
causes  which  may  perhaps  be  roughly  grouped  under  two  heads, 
namely,  small  quantity  and  poor  quality  of  gluten.  Strength 
is  indeed  well  described  as  an  ‘elusive  feature.’  Were  it  a 
Mendelian  unit  character  it  would  be  quite  otherwise.”  To 
this  Biffen®®  replied  briefly,  with  the  general  conclusion  that 
definitions  of  “strength”  and  “weakness”  as  a variety  char- 
acter are  too  elastic  terms  to  permit  scientific  conclusions  on  the 
points  in  controversy.  It  might  be  added  that,  throughout 
their  articles,  Biffen  appears  to  use  these  terms  as  indicating 
high-  or  low-nitrogen  content,  while  Saunders  considers  a 
wheat  as  “strong”  if  the  flour  from  it  makes  a large,  well- 
piled  loaf  of  bread. 

It  appears  from  this  discussion  that  the  question  as  to 
whether  hybridization  can  be  successfully  used  to  improve 
the  quality  of  wheat  is  still  unsettled. 


"Jour.  Ag.  Sci.  3,  (1908)  86-101. 
“Jour.  Ag.  Sci.  3,  (1908)  218-222. 
“Ibid,  3,  (1908)  223-224. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


55 


Nor  is  there  much  evidence  in  the  literature  of  'wheat  breed- 
ing to  show  whether  line-selection  can  be  successfully  used  for 
this  purpose.  Von  Feilitzen"”,  as  a result  of  a two  years’  study 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  division  of  the  seed  grain  into 
“starchy”  and  “glassy”  portions,  using  the  diaphanoscope 
for  the  separation,  “exerts  no  significant  influence  on  the 
quantity  of  yield  or  size  of  grains,  and  only  very  slight  influ- 
ence upon  the  starchiness  of  the  resultant  grain.”  Humphrey 
and  Biffen”  in  the  report  previously  referred  to,  state  that 
“ ^ =55:  after  four  seasons  (of  line-selection)  no  manifest 

improvement  has  resulted.  The  attempt  to  select  a strong 
wheat  from  such  a high-yielding  variety  as  Rivet  hardly 
appears  to  be  worth  making  for  its  endosperm  characters  are 
singularly  constant.”  Ladd  and  Sheppard^^  started  originally 
with  a large  number  of  samples  of  wheat  selected  for  their 
high-nitrogen  content,  but  finally  reduced  these  to  eight,  as 
the  “tested  samples  did  not  continue  to  propagate  uniformly 
high  protein  content.”  A four-years’  test  of  these  eight 
showed  that  they  did  not  continue  to  increase  in  their  protein 
content,  seasonal  influences  of  the  different  years  causing 
ununiform  fluctuations.  Unfortunately,  their  work  was  not 
checked  against  non-selected  seed,  nor  against  low-protein 
selections,  hence  no  positive  conclusions  could  be  drawn. 
Lyon”  conducted  two  different  sets  of  selections  for  the  pur- 
pose of  changing  the  protein  content  of  wheat.  In  the  first, 
the  kernels  of  lighter  specific  gravity  (which  had  been  found 
by  an  extended  series  of  analyses  to  be  somewhat  richer  in  per- 
centage of  nitrogen  than  the  heavier  kernels  from  the  same 
sample  of  grain)  were  planted  separately  from  the  heavier 
grain  from  the  same  lot  of  seed,  and  in  each  successive  genera- 
tion, for  four  years,  the  light  kernels  separated  from  the  grain 
grown  from  the  light  seed  and  the  heavy  kernels  from  that 
gro-wn  from  the  heavy  seed.  The  following  are  his  conclusions 
from  this  work : 

"Jour.  f.  Landw.  52,  (1902)  401-412. 

"Loc.  cit.,  page  7. 

’*No.  Dak.  Exp.  Sta.  Rpt.,  1903,  36-37. 

"*U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.  Bur.  Plant  Ind.  Bull.  No.  78,  72-100. 


56 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


“Taking,  together,  the  results  of  1902,  which  show  a decrease  in 
the  weight  of  the  kernels  on  a single  head  as  the  content  of  proteid 
nitrogen  increases,  the  results  of  1903,  which  show  a slight  decrease 
in  the  weight  of  the  kernels  from  the  plant,  accompanying  an  in- 
crease in  the  percentage  of  proteid  n'trogen,  and  the  yields  of  the 
light  and  heavy  seed  for  the  four  years  beginning  with  1900,  there 
would  appear  to  be  a slight  decrease  in  yield  of  grain,  accompanying 
an  increase  in  the  percentage  of  proteid  nitrogen.  Th’s  loss  in 
yield  is  not  sufficient  to  counteract  the  increase  in  nitrogen,  and 
the  result  is  to  increase  the  production  of  proteids  per  acre. 

“V  ewed  in  the  light  of  these  various  experiments,  the  selection 
of  large,  heavy  wheat  kernels  for  seed  does  not  appear  to  be  alto- 
gether unobjectionable,  as  in  this  case  it  resulted  n a decreased 
production  of  proteids  per  acre,  without  a compensating  increase  in 
the  yield  of  grain,  when  cont  nued  for  a number  of  years.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  selection  of  the  small,  light  seed  is  hardly  to  be 
recommended.  In  fact,  selection  based  upon  kernel  size  or  weight 
is  not  a satisfactory  method  for  permanently  improving  wheat.” 

In  the  second  series  of  experiments  in  breeding  to  increase 
the  proteid  nitrogen  in  wheat,  he  sowed  separately  the  seed 
from  different  individual  plants  grown  from  the  same  original 
plant.  The  nitrogen  content  of  the  planted  seed  was  deter- 
mined by, analyzing  the  grain  from  half  of  all  the  heads  of  the 
plant,  this  having  been  previously  found  to  be  a sufficiently 
accurate  method  of  sampling.  In  the  second  year,  the  progeny 
was  again  planned  separately.  His  conclusions  from  these  two 
seasons’  work,  during  Avhich  a fewer  number  of  plants  were 
used  th.an  he  himself  felt  was  desirable,  for  fnial  conclusions, 
led  him  to  express  the  following  opinions: 

“There  is  a tendency  for  each  class  of  plants  to  reproduce  In 
the  same  relation  to  the  other  classes,  but  there  is  less  dif- 
ference between  the  extreme  classes  in  the  offspring  than  in  the 
parent  plants.  In  other  words,  while  all  plants  tend  to  repro- 
duce their  own  qualities,  those  plants  varying  widely  from  the 
average  produce,  :'n  general,  offspring  varying  from  the  average 
less  widely  than  did  the  parents.  Although  this  is  a rule,  its  appli- 
cation to  the  individual  is  not  universal.  Certain  plants  may  be 
found  whose  tendency  to  variation  extends  through  both  genera- 
tions. There  is  also  wide  variation  between  certain  plants  of  the 
same  parent.  For  instance,  the  plants  numbered  from  21,205  to 
21,212,  all  of  which  come  from  the  same  parent,  vary  from  2.16  to 
5.23  per  cent  in  proteid  nitrogen  content,  while  plants  69,805  and 
69,806  vary  from  5.82  to  1.66  per  cent  in  this  constituent. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


57 


“It  would  seem,  therefore,  entirely  reasonable  to  believe  that 
a very  considerable  increase  in  the  proteid  nitrogen  content  of  wheat 
may  be  effected  by  careful  and  continuous  reproduction  from  plants 
of  high  proteid  nitrogen  content.” 

Lyon’s  work  at  the  Nebraska  Experiment  Station  was  con- 
tinued in  subsequent  years  by  Montgomery,  whose  results  have 
not  yet  been  published.  The  writer  has  been  informally 
advised,  however,  that  Montgomery’s  results  completely  dis- 
prove the  conclusion  of  Lyon  in  the  last  paragraph  of  the 
above  quotation.  No  other  account  of  investigations  of  this 
kind  have  appeared  in  the  literature  of  wheat-breeding  which 
is  available  to  the  writer. 

Harper  and  PeteE^,  of  the  Kentucky  Experiment  Station, 
as  a result  of  their  investigations  of  the  quality  of  the  grain 
from  different  parts  of  a wheat  plant,  suggest  the  use  of  flinty 
kernels,  from  the  middle  of  the  head,  and  selected  from  early 
maturing  varieties,  as  the  best  seed  to  use  in  breeding  for  im- 
provment  in  composition.  Their  recommendation  is  based 
upon  the  use  of  a machine  for  testing  the  ‘"hardness”  of  the 
kernels.  It  is  not,  however,  supported  by  any  experimental 
evidence  that  the  characteristics  thus  found  in  the  seed  grain 
will  be  conferred  upon  the  progeny  therefrom. 


'^Ky.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  113. 


VARIABILITY  IN  NITROGEN  CONTENT  OF  WHEAT 


The  first  essential  in  any  attempt  to  change  the  composition 
of  the  grain  is,  of  course,  a knowledge  of  the  limits  of  varia- 
tion in  the  grain  from  which  the  selections  are  to  be  made. 
The  second  essential  is  a knowledge  of  what  constitutes  the 
proper  unit  of  selection,  this  being  dependent  upon  the  varia- 
bility in  composition  and  upon  the  hereditary  tendencies  of 
the  different  kernels  or  other  parts  of  the  plants.  In  the  case 
of  wheat,  the  question  to  be  determined  is  whether  the  single 
kernel,  the  single  spike  or  head,  or  the  whole  plant,  is  the 
proper  unit  of  selection.  Or,  in  other  words,  shall  the  separa- 
tion be  of  high-nitrogen  kernels  from  any  lot  of  seed  grain,  or 
of  heads  having  a high  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  their  entire 
number  of  kernels,  or  of  individual  plants  the  entire  amount 
of  grain  of  which  carries  a higher  average  percentage  of  nitro- 
gen than  that  of  other  plants  grown  under  the  same  conditions. 
A final  essential  is  a proper  method  of  sampling  for  analyses, 
so  that  a portion  of  the  grain  which  shall  correctly  represent 
the  entire  lot  can  be  analyzed  and  the  remainder  saved  for 
planting,  in  the  case  of  those  lots  which  are  finally  selected  to 
serve  as  parent  stocks. 

Some  evidence  on  all  three  of  these  points  was  secured  be- 
fore our  own  attempts  to  increase  the  nitrogen  content  of 
wheat  by  line-selection  were  inaugurated,  and  has  been  pub- 
lished as  Bulletin  No.  102  of  this  Station.  Since  the  prepara- 
tion of  that  bulletin,  however,  a much  larger  quantity  of  data 
concerning  the  variability  of  the  nitrogen  content  of  wheat 
has  been  collected,  which  should  be  presented  in  this  report. 
Some  of  this  material  was  collected  in  connection  with  our 
studies  of  the  composition  of  different  varieties  of  Washington 
wheats;  other  parts  of  it  as  a result  of  analyses  of  wheats  under 
trial  in  the  experimental  tracts  of  the  cereal  investigations  of 
the  Station ; others  as  a comparison  of  different  plants  grown 
in  the  same  row;  and  the  remainder  as  a result  of  our  studies 
of  the  composition  of  the  grain  from  different  parts  of  the  same 
plant,  wliich  were  summarized  in  Bulletin  No.  102.  but  the  data 
from  vdii-'h  are  here  presented  in  full  for  the  first  time. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  59 

The  data  naturally  fall  into  the  following  groups:  varia- 
tion in  composition  of  different  strains  of  the  same 
variety  grown  in  different  parts  of  the  State ; of 
different  strains  of  the  same  variety  grown  in  the 
same  field;  of  different  plants  grown  in  the  same  row; 
of  different  spikes  of  the  same  plant ; and  of  kernels  from  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  same  spike,  and  are  presented  in  Tables 
11,  12,  13,  14,  and  15  respectively.  These  data  are  all  pre- 
sented in  terms  of  protein  content,  rather  than  percentage  of 
nitrogen,  as  the  purpose  for  which  they  were  primarily  col- 
lected required  their  computation  on  this  basis,  in  many  cases, 
and  it  seemed  to  be  more  convenient  to  bring  them  all  to  this 
basis  rather  than  to  recalculate  a large  proportion  of  them 
into  nitrogen  percentages. 

Table  11. — Variation  in  Composition  of  Different  Samples  of 

the  Same  Variety  of  Wheat  Grown  in  the  Same  State 


Crop 

No.  of 

Percentage  of  Protein 

(N  X 6.25) 

Variety 

of 

Samples 

Maximum 

Minimum 

Average 

Bluestem 

1905 

22 

14.20 

9.50 

11.79 

1906 

24 

18.43 

10.31 

13.75 

1907 

30 

14.43 

8.87 

11.56 

1908 

22 

17.42 

10.13 

13.25 

1909 

28 

15.81 

9.88 

12.15 

126 

18.43 

8.87 

12.44 

Little  Club 

1905 

18 

15.21 

7.89 

10.73 

1906 

11 

13.88 

• 8.37 

10.94 

1907 

14 

13.52 

8.26 

10.43 

1908 

14 

13.94 

8.05 

11.80 

1909 

13 

12.31 

7.50 

9.83 

70 

15.21 

7.50 

10.75 

Turkey  Red 

1905 

7 

14.17 

8.42 

11.14 

1906 

11 

15.33 

10.70 

12.64 

1907 

10 

12.43 

8.40 

10.38 

1908 

12 

14.06 

10.00 

11.61 

1909 

16 

14.44 

8.69 

10.69 

5 6 

15.33 

8.40 

11.27 

Jones’  Fife 

1905 

8 

12.45 

9.21 

10.37 

1906 

15 

15.06 

9.60 

12.34 

1907 

7 

12.60 

9.22 

11.69 

1908 

10 

12.44 

10.38 

11.26 

1909 

3 

15.38 

8.69 

12.25 

43 

15.06 

8.69 

11.61 

60 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


Table  12. — Variation  in  Composition  of  Different  Strains  of  a 
Single  Variety  of  Wheat,  Grown  in  the  Same  Field 


No.  of 

Percentage  of 

Protein  (N  x 6.25) 

Grown  at 

Crop  of 

Samples 

Maximum 

Minimum 

Average 

Pullman 

1906 

11 

19.27 

14.80 

16.70 

1907 

10 

15.64 

9.97 

13.34 

1908 

10 

18.19 

15.13 

17.20 

Ritzville 

1906 

10 

18.03 

13.59 

16.48 

1907 

10 

14.62 

12.55 

12.98 

1908 

7 

17.98 

15.83 

16.63 

Quincy 

1906 

10 

18.16 

14.58 

15.46 

1907 

10 

15.94 

14.43 

14.85 

1908 

9 

17.63 

15.63 

16.56 

Table  13.- 

-Variation 

in  Composition  of  Different  Plants  in  the 

Same  Row 

No.  of 

Percentage  of  Protein  (N  x 6.25) 

Variety 

Crop  of 

Samples 

Maximum 

Minimum . 

Average 

Bluestem 

1907 

40 

12.31 

8.59 

10.13 

1908 

160 

24.44 

9.19 

18.51 

1909 

160 

18.31 

8.44 

11.32 

1910 

100 

20.12 

13.69 

16.80 

1911 

50 

24.50 

8.03 

18.40 

Little  Club 

» 1907 

40 

13.32 

7.84 

9.77 

1908 

160 

21.62 

14.31 

17.71 

1909 

160 

13.75 

7.62 

10.39 

1910 

200 

34.31 

8.88 

17.34 

1911 

50 

26.92 

14.50 

19.49 

Jones’  Fife 

1907 

40 

15.04 

8.23 

10.94 

1908 

160 

19.42 

7.31 

12.42 

1909 

160 

14.00 

7.87 

10.66 

1910 

200 

18.56 

11.81 

15.02 

1911 

50 

16.75 

11.50 

12.92 

Red  Russian  1907 

40 

17.81 

10.34 

13.23 

1908 

160 

21.06 

9.19 

15.30 

1909 

200 

15.62 

9.31 

12.29 

1910 

160 

24.19 

14.75 

16.27 

1911 

50 

20.00 

14.50 

16.40 

The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  61 


Table  14. — Variation  in  Composition  of  Different  Spikes  of  the 

Same  Plant 


Crop 

Plant 

Nn.  nf 

Precentage 

of  Protein  (N  x 6.25] 

Variety  of 

No. 

Spikes 

Maximum 

Minimum 

Average 

Bluestem — 

1906 

3A 

7 

14.97 

13.15 

14.08 

3B 

5 

16.75 

14.65 

15.60 

3C 

5 

16.46 

14.34 

15.46 

5B 

6 

18.11 

15.47 

16.47 

5C 

6 

18.34 

16.62 

17.39 

5D 

7 

20.84 

16.29 

18.81 

Little  Club — 

1906 

2A 

8 

23.80 

16.11 

18.18 

2B 

9 

19.81 

16.46 

18.20 

2C 

5 

20.91 

15.01 

17.57 

4A 

7 

19.20 

18.20 

18.64 

4B 

6 

19.62 

17.51 

18.82 

4C 

6 

18.78 

17.77 

18.63 

4D 

6 

19.36 

17.24 

18.11 

Jones’  Fife — - 

1906 

lA 

9 

19.40 

14.89 

17.84 

6A 

5 

16.50 

13.95 

15.11 

6B 

5 

15.40 

13.22 

14.45 

6C 

5 

16.16 

13.35 

14.53 

6D 

5 

15.08 

13.34 

14.08 

IOC 

6 

15.37 

12.38 

13.02 

7E 

9 

21.84 

14.89 

18.46 

Turkey  Red — 

1906 

7A 

5 

16.63 

15.03 

15.73 

7B 

5 

16.09 

14.78 

15.69 

IIB 

6 

14.07 

10.06 

12.79 

. lie 

5 

13.75 

12.43 

13.06 

IID 

5 

15.62 

14.60 

15.11 

14A 

7 

20.96 

15.51 

17.69 

14B 

20 

23.39 

15.62 

18.51 

Hybrid  No.  143- 

14G 

19 

24.61 

15.42 

18.29 

1911 

A 

27 

18.25 

12.62 

15.95 

B 

13 

14.75 

11.13 

13.18 

C 

18 

14.00 

11.19 

13.24 

D 

17 

19.12 

13.00 

14.35 

P 

24 

19.00 

8.06 

15.06 

V 

17 

17.19 

12.81 

15.16 

w 

17 

21.56 

11.81 

15.28 

X 

19 

18.75 

14.12 

16.02 

Y 

20 

20.75 

13.62 

15.78 

Z 

16 

36.81 

14.31 

18.82 

Table  15. — Variation  in  Composition  of  Kernels  From  Different  Parts  of  the  Same  Spike 


Per  Cent  Protein”SoSSS 
(Nx6.25)  ir-LccDiouico 


Location  of 
Kernels 


Spike  No. 


Plant  No. 


Si  Jh  P 

<U  5 OJ  O)  O)  O) 
O M O M O M 


<X)(MCr500C<I(>l»Ot-OTt<C^rt<OC<IC<JCO'«t<t^OOCO 
aiasr-^asoi'XicviitoLrat^ococ^ot-asLO’^ioio 
'^l>-t-?DC£)t'-t:^00'X'lOt^-t-t-CC>00  00  00  00t>-«O 


a ^ 


'^(MfMOOrtcOOO^C^ 

MooOt-i-IC£)I>-CDt- 

Per  Cent  Protein LOcocDiot-^t^t-icpio 
(N  X 6.25) 


Location  of 
Kernels 


®^^®^^®S® 
o a--  o o 


a 

m 

6 


>>  ® 

+->  -i-> 

Q)  m 

f-c 

.2 

> w 


<^^CO(MCOt>-rHOiC<Jcioa:C<l 

ocooiocnoo-’^^MLOioioTHoi 

^I0«0^t>00t^  00  00l0t>t^ 


uS  ^ ^ 

®'T3^®'05®'02^®^2^ 
a^d  ^ a-d  ^ a>d  ^ a-d  ^ 
a-^  o a;d  o a-^  o a-^  o 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


63 


These  tables  are  practically  self-explanatory;  but  the  fol- 
lowing brief  comments  may  serve  to  make  them  a little  clearer. 

Table  11  is  a summary  of  the  data  concerning  all  the  sam- 
ples of  the  four  leading  varieties  which  were  collected  dur- 
ing the  five  years’  study  of  the  composition  of  Washington 
wheats. 

Table  12  shows  the  variability  in  the  several  samples  of 
Bluestem  wheat  grown  during  the  investigations  concerning 
the  effect  of  transferring  seed  grain,  which  have  already  been 
discussed  in  Part  I.  of  this  report. 

Table  13  is  a summary  of  the  results  of  the  analyses  for 
selection  purposes  of  a large  number  of  individual  plants,  the 
plants  of  the  same  variety  being  grown  in  the  same  or  adjoin- 
ing rows  each  year,  and  all  given  as  uniform  conditions  ol 
growth  as  was  possible.  While  these  plants  were  grown  in 
a line-selection  experiment,  the  results  showed  that  the  selec- 
tion had  no  influence  upon  the  composition  of  the  resultant 
grain,  and  the  limits  of  variability  here  shown  may  be  regard- 
ed as  typical  of  that  between  plants  in  the  same  field  under 
ordinary  growing  conditions. 

Table  14  is  the  result  of  an  elaborate  study  of  the  relation 
of  the  composition  of  the  heads  of  an  individual  plant  to  the 
length  of  straw  upon  which  they  grew,  and  their  relative  posi- 
tion in  the  stool,”  or  plant.  These  data  were  published,  in 
part,  in  Bulletin  No.  102,  but  are  here  presented  in  summar- 
ized form,  in  order  to  show  the  limits  of  variability  of  the 
different  heads  of  the  same  plant.  In  general,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  variation  is  greatest,  as  might  be  expected,  in  the 
plants  having  the  greatest  number  of  individual  spikes. 

Table  15  shows  the  variability  in  composition  of  the  kernels 
from  different  spikelets,  or  rows  of  kernels  within  the  spikelets, 
of  the  same  plant.  The  averages  from  these  data  were  re- 
ported in  Bulletin  No.  102,  but  results  of  the  individual  an- 
alyses are  here  presented  for  the  first,  time. 


EXPERIMENTS  IN  LINE-SELECTION  BREEDING  FOR 
CHANGE  OF  NITROGEN-CONTENT  OF  WHEAT 


'The  writer’s  participation  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  work 
of  Lyon  at  the  Nebraska  Experiment  Station,  which  has  been 
repeatedly  referred  to  in  this  report,  led  him  to  believe  that 
line-selection  breeding  of  wheat  for  improvement  of  its  chem- 
ical composition  offered  a very  promising  field  of  research. 
The  fact  that  several  of  the  highest-yielding  varieties  of  the 
State  were  found  to  be  very  low  in  their  average  protein  con- 
tent, made  it  seem  especially  desirable  that  such  work  should 
be  undertaken  in  the  State  of  Washington. 

The  work  was  begun  in  1907.  Two  general  lines  of  selec- 
tion were  used.  The  first  was  based  upon  the  knowledge 
which  had  been  obtained  that  the  kernels  from  certain  parts 
of  the  wheat  plant  were  richer  in  percentage  of  nitrogen  than 
those  from  other  parts  of  the  plant,  and  consisted,  therefore, 
in  a line-selection  of  the  grain  from  these  different  parts  of 
the  plants,  in  order  to  ascertain  whether  this  tendency  to 
variation  in  composition  could  be  fixed  upon  the  progeny  of 
the  seed,  by  such  selection  breeding.  This  was  recognized  at 
the  outset  as  being  an  improbable  outcome,  yet  it  is  the  actual 
basis  for  any  type  of  breeding  by  selection  which  depends 
upon  differences  in  composition  of  kernels  in  a mixed  lot  of 
seed,  and  is  the  suggestion  made  by  Harper  and  Peter,  in  the 
bulletin  already  referred  to^®.  The  second  line  of  selection 
which  was  used  was  one  based  upon  the  selection  of  individual 
plants.  This  seemed  to  the  writer  to  be  a much  more  promis- 
ing method,  since  it  would  appear  that  a wheat  plant  which, 
when  growing  side  by  side  with  other  plants  in  the  same  row 
or  field,  developed  grain  richer  in  nitrogen  than  that  of  its 
neighboring  plants,  ought  to  be  the  best  unit  for  selection 
breeding.  Lyon’s  conclusions,  quoted  above,  were  in  this  same 
general  direction. 

The  results  of  these  several  line-selection  breeding  experi- 
ments are  shown  below. 


'=Ky.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  No.  113. 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


65 


Selection  of  Kernels  From  Inner  and  Outer  Rows  of  the  Same 

Spike 

Five  plants  each  of  three  fall  varieties  of  wheat,  namely, 
Red  Russian,  Jones’  Fife,  and  Turkey  Red,  were  chosen,  and 
in  each  case,  all  the  grain  from  the  outer  rows  of  kernels  in 
all  the  spikelets  was  separated  from  that  growing  in  the  inner 
meshes  of  the  spikelets,  small  samples  drawn  out  from  each 
lot  for  analysis,  and  the  remainder  planted  in  adjacent  rows 
in  the  cereal  nursery.  The  composition  of  the  selected  seed 
and  of  the  resultant  grain,  in  each  case,  is  shown  in  Table  16. 


Table  16. — Influence  of  Seed  From  Inner  and  Outer  Rows  of  a 
Spike  Upon  Composition  of  Resultant  Grain 


Composition  of  Grain 
Planted  Harvested 


Variety- 

o 

ux 

2.' 

Selection 

o ^ 

Cf<?  p 

0) 

ts 

2. 

(w* 

(-»■ 

o ^ 
cr?  ^ 
a> 

P 

Red  Russian  . . . 

. . .2100 

5 

Inner 

Outer 

.0438 

.0486 

2.328 

2.407 

.0306 

.0310 

2.558 

2.571 

Jone’s  Fife  . . . . 

. . .2102 

5 

Inner 

Outer 

.0436 

.0492 

2.301 

2.240 

.0342 

.0350 

2.041 

2.000 

Turkey  Red  . . . 

. . .2106 

5 

Inner 

Outer 

.0428 

.0550 

2.327 

2.541 

.0329 

.0313 

2.592 

2.585 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  resultant  grain  was  perfectly 
uniform  in  composition,  for  each  variety,  and  the  experiment 
was,  therefore,  immediately  abandoned. 

Selection  of  Seed  From  Different  Spikelets  of  the  Same  Spikes 

In  the  spring  of  1906,  all  the  heads  of  each  of  six  different 
plants  of  both  Bluestem  and  Little  Club  wheat  were  carefully 
separated  into  their  successive  spikelets,  and  all  the  kernels 
from  the  lowest  pair  of  spikelets  of  each  spike  of  the  plant 
thrown  together,  those  from  the  second  pair  of  spikelets  in  a 
second  lot,  etc.,  etc.  The  grain  from  these  separate  lots  was 
then  planted  in  adjacent  rows,  and  the  resulting  grain  har- 
vested at  the  proper  time.  Owing  to  the  enormous  number  of 


66  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

individual  samples  which  would  have  been  involved  if,  in  the 
second  generation,  all  spikelets  had  been  again  planted  sep- 
arately, it  was  deemed  best  to  make  the  separations  in  this 
generation  only  in  three  divisions,  known  respectively  as  the 
butt,  middle,  and  tip  sections  of  each  spike.  These  separations 
were  made,  a sample  of  each  group  then  taken  out  to  be  plant- 
ed, and  the  balance  properly  composited  for  analysis  to  show 
the  composition  of  the  grain  grown  from  the  previous  spring’s 
selections.  The  grain  resulting  from  the  second  selections, 
made  as  just  described,  this  being  the  crop  of  1907,  was  har- 
vested, threshed,  and  analyzed.  No  selections  were  made  this 
third  season,  as  the  results  of  the  analyses  of  the  grain  grown 
m 1906,  from  the  selections  of  successive  spikelets,  had  led  the 
writer  to  believe  that  the  second  season’s  crop  would  be  uni- 
form in  composition.  The  results  of  the  analyses  of  the  sam- 
ples from  these  two  successive  generations  of  line  selections  of 
spikelets  from  different  parts  of  the  spike,  are  shown  in 
Tabl  17.  The  figures  apparently  show  a slight  effect  of  the 
selection  process  upon’  the  composition  of  the  resultant  grain, 
since  both  the  average  weight  of  kernels  (the  data  for  which 
are  omitted  from  the  table  in  order  to  economize  space)  and 
the  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  kernels,  show  slight  varia- 
tions in  the  same  general  directions  as  were  found  to  exist  in 
the  grain  from  the  different  parts  of  the  spike.  Before  this 
apparent  effect  was  discovered,  however,  the  entire  yield  of 
grain  of  each  of  the  selections  had  been  threshed  out  in  order 
to  secure  samples  for  analysis,  so  that  it  was  impossible  to 
continue  this  line-selection,  and  a new  series  was  later  started, 
the  results  from  which  appear  in  later  pages  of  this  report. 


!-< 

h-i 

f-j 

X 

X 

X 

X 

o 

o 

O 

o 

05 

<35 

> 

2 - = 

E ® 

2 1 

: - Qg  - : : 

W 

w 

<-t- 

9 ; 

o : 

<x>  • 

B : 

<x> 

3 

O'  • 

o'  • 

CD  CD  (iO  O 'X' 

05  <55  05  os  05  Oi 
-q  05  (OT  CO  to 


tiS  ^5  to  to  to  M to 
00  cn  CD  oo  ^ 
tJ10«DcDhf>.CDM- 
<1  00  to  CD  O to  CO 


CD  CD  ^ 'X'  CD  CD 
05  05  <55  05  05  <35 
--q  05  cn  4i-  CO  to 


CD  CD  CD  CD  CD  Xi 
05  05  tn  CJ1  <yq 
M O CD  00  -q  05 


CO  CO 
W <55  to  00 
Oi  o <35  to 


tfik  CO  CO  CO  4i.  -q 
^ i_i  l_i  CD  CO  05  h-*' 
K to  to  X -4  X 


CD  CD  CD  X X (XI  r-h 
05  <35  Cn  <31  Cn  (yi  ^ 

M O CD  00  <5i  !< 


15  to  to  to  to  to  to 

bi  ^ "cn  ^ ^ 05 
GC  to  ^ to  4i-  CO  >4^^ 
X O l-<  to  <31  to 


CO  rfi-  to  CO  CO 

O X I— < CD  C71  to 
Q(D  oo  00  ^ CO 


^ CO  to  CO  CO  -q 

Hk  CD  to  iX  O <35  o 

Oi  OT  M <31  oo  cn 


2 

6 

w 2 

<15  B 

H 

CL  ® 


4ib  to  <31  t4i>-  CO  <31 
CO  00  O )-*  <35  CO 

W to  X 00  00  o 


to 

to 

to 

^ • 

1— < 

1— < 

1-1 

h-i 

to 

to 

to 

to 

to 

to 

M 

!-< 

h-i 

4-1 

QO 

Ifik  ■ 

W 

31 

4. 

4^ 

31 

bi 

-q 

31 

<35 

<35 

-q 

55 

4^ 

4. 

to 

00 

to 

l-< 

4-  • 

CO 

CO 

l-< 

O 

CO 

O 

l-< 

o 

O 

to 

o 

00 

1-1 

05 

4^ 

o 

o 

o 

W • 

CO 

o 

h-k 

4>. 

o 

15 

O 

O 

00 

OO 

X 

o 

© 

h-i 

M 

CO 

-d 

W <31  to  CO  CO  <31 
;0  o !-<  to  O !-<  OO 
K X >-<  CO  <31  to  <35 


K 1-1  h-i  h-i  H-i  (-1  H-i 

4.1  h-i  1-1  1— 1 4-1  h- 1 h- 1 

3 

4ik4:-4>-<35  4^4-4- 

WCOC0  4-C0C0  4- 

X <55  1—1  CO  00  <35  H-i 

X OO  4-1  4-1  -d  00  4^ 

H*  O OO  <31  00  -d  00 

H X to  00  <31  to  <35 

pr 

rfi.  4:^  CO  (35  CO  ^ CO 

^ X O 4^  -q  to  4:^ 

W <31  <31  to  <31  ~q 

Iwtotototototo  ISto^to^toto 

•^1<35<35-<I<31<35X  HCTlCoblWCTlOi 

©toxtoxi-ix  ^X'^|-<*^<31(Cr5 

©h-^l-^OOtOCTlI-*  OtO  O 00|-< 


<3<  CO  4!-  4:^  <35 
X <31  <31  • CO  X O 
•■1  !-<  4^  • to  <31  ^q 


CO  4^  to 
© to  <31 

l-k  <31  CO  |_< 


^ 131  <31  CO 
Cil  <31  O 05 
OO  X h-^ 


CO  4i- 
M X 
to  <31 


4^  CO 
4^  X 
<35  ~q 


Table  17. — Influence  of  Seed  From  Successive  Spikelets  of  the  Same  Spike,  Upon  the 
Composition  of  Resulting  Grain  (Two  Generations) 


68  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

Selection  of  Upper  and  Lower  Spikes  From  the  Same  Plants 

Our  earlier  investigations  having  shown  that  the  upper 
heads,  growing  on  the  taller  straws  of  the  plant  have  a longer 
development  period,  and,  hence,  produce  heavier  kernels  with 
a lower  nitrogen  content,  than  the  lower  heads,  or  those  grow- 
ing on  short  straws,  an  experiment  was  started  to  ascertain 
whether  these  differences  in  composition  would  be  commimi- 
cated  to  the  progeny  of  the  kernels  from  these  different  spikes 
of  the  same  plant.  The  upper  spike  (i.  e.  the  one  growing  on 
the  tallest  straw)  and  the  lower  one  (i.  e.  the  one  growing  on 
the  shortest  straw  which  developed  a well-matured  head)  were 
selected  from  each  of  three  plants  of  both  Bluestem  and  Little 
Club  wheat.  One-half  of  each  head  was  stripped  off  for 
analysis,  and  the  kernels  from  the  other  half  planted  in  each 
case.  (This  method  of  sampling  has  been  proved  to  be  accur- 
ate by  Lyon  and  the  writer.)  The  resulting  grain  was  har- 
vested separately,  threshed  by  hand,  and  analyzed.  No 
attempt  was  made  to  continue  the  line-selection  in  this  case, 
as  the  percentages  of  nitrogen  in  the  resultant  grain  were 
found  to  be  as  uniform  as  duplicate  samples  of  the  same  grain 
could  be  expected  to  be.  Later,  upon  computing  the  total 
yield  of  grain  and  of  nitrogen,  as  shown  in  Table  18,  it 
appeared  that  there  was  a very  considerable  difference  in  the 
increase  obtained  from  the  seeding  the  light,  high-nitrogen  ker- 
nels from  the  lower  spikes,  from  that  obtained  from  the  heav- 
ier, low-nitrogen  kernels  of  the  upper  spikes. 

The  significance  of  this  last  mentioned  phenomenon  in  prac- 
tical seeding  operations  led  the  writer  to  determine  to  repeat 
this  work,  and  to  make  at  least  a three-year  ^s  line  selection, 
before  definitely  concluding  to  abandon  this  type  of  selection 
work.  Accordingly  a new  series  of  line-selections  of  upper 
and  lower  spikes  was  started,  the  results  of  which  are  pre- 
sented in  the  next  paragraph. 


Lower  16  .018 


■ON  lu^ld 


CO 

to 

f-l 

CO 

to 

M. 

w 

W ■ 

W 

Pt-* 

r-t- 

d 

p" 

p" 

p 

p 

P 

•T 

P 

05 

w 

P 

P 

p 

P 

Q 

O 

a 

B 

B 

p" 

P 

c 

CP 

O' 

o' 

H 

p 

O- 


00 


eilids 


m 

o 

o 

Pi 


tOi_it>5(_ib5|_itOMtCMtN5 

-Jcnto-jCn_qcocntocoO 


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tOtOtCf— itOt^CAJtOi^tOCO 
C0O^C0>^^h|i.CnOMOI-i 


;qSi0M  -AY 


w 

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p 

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<x> 

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<T> 

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COt.OtOtN5cotOcctOtOK)CObO 

too-<i-<lcni<iO"^ocnto*^ 

CoOCOOi^Ol^COOhpi.1— ‘-JO 
051— ^OtOOCM^f^-.qCncX)tOI— ‘Cn 


p 

p 

U0SOJ1IN  1^03  J0J  S' 

Pi 


OC.  w -y  Cl  cn  cn  cc  >4^  tN5  >4^ 
f-iC0o4^O<Xa^H‘OO>4^t0 
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l-‘tOI-‘tOI-‘l-‘l-‘(-‘l-‘l-‘t-‘h-‘ 

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4^00'h-‘OC005C0l-‘4^l-‘C0Cn 

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• noSoJiTN 


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4^a5i-‘rf‘^oa5toi-‘a5coco-j 

l-‘C50COOwfi>OOHp^OWCOCn 


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<ci  05  -a  -J  -j 


to  H-i  l-i  1-^  M 
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05  OO  O CD  -q 


CO  to  to  to  M to 
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to  to  to  CO  to 
to  M 00  00 
cn  05  CD  CO  cn  Cl 


to  M M M M M 
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1-1  05  cn  CO  i-‘  ►ti- 


si0n.i03i  JO 

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Table  19. — Influence  of  Line-Selection  of  Grain  From  Upper  vs.  Lower  Spikes  of  the  Same  plant, 
and  From  Upper,  Middle,  and  Lower  Spikelets  of  the  Same  Spike, 

Upon  Composition  of  Resultant  Grain 


^ Per  cent 
I ^nitrogen. 

O)  tH 
t>  05 


O iH  O lO 


eg  (M  (M 


^-Av.  weight 

kernels co  eo 

o o o o 


T— ( 7— I 1— I 1— I O T— I 

eg  eg  eg  eg  eg  eg 


o th  eg  eo  t-  th 

CO  o o tH 

-rfi  eo  CO  CO 

o o o o o o 


eg 
a»  th 


Per  cent 
nitrogen 


Av.  weight  of 
kernels 


eg  eg  CO  LO 

l>-  lO  O 05 

eg  CO  CO  CO 


CO  CO  CO  tH 

CO  05  00  eg 

CO  T— I tH  t— I 

o o o o 


00  05  tH  O CO  UO 
00  tH  CO  05  Oi  o 
eg*  CO  CO  eg  eg’  CO 


C0  0 05l0c0t- 
■Tf  CO  CO  tH  00 
eg  eg  eg  7-1  eg  iH 
O O O o O o 


-M  ’-I 
m th 


Per  cent  o eg  t-  co 
nitrogen ® 

eg  CO  CO  CO 


Av.  weight 

kernels co  co  eg  eg 

o o o o 


LOOOLOlOiOt- 

TH00O5rHOiC- 

co  eg  eg’  CO  eg  eg 


lO  CO  tH  05  CO  O 
to  CO  CO  LO  lO  lO 

CO  CO  CO  eg  eg  eg 
o o o o o o 


Per  cent 
rH  nitrogen . 

1— I 
^05 


t-  LO  eg  7-h 

O 05  tr-  05 


eg  7— I 7— I 7— I 


Av.  weight  of  t>-  'O  eg 

1 7 CO  O CO  o 

kernels co  co  eg  eg 

o o o o 


t-  LO  lO  C5  CO 
LO  C-  C-  <55  05  7-1 

7— I 7— I 7— ( 1—1  7— I eg 


00  05  CO  'ch'  00 
LO  LO  CO  CO  LO  lo 
CO  CO  CO  eg  eg  eg 
o o o o o o 


Per  cent 

00  t-  CO 

nitrogen.  . . 

05  C-  LO  CO 

tH  tH  a 

^ Av.  weight 

of  O O 

W kernels.  . . . 

1— 1 eg 

o o o a 

t-  CO  t-  eg  00  lo 
LO  ''f  Tf  t-  00  o 
iH  7— ( 7— I 1—1 7— I eg 


LO  CO  tH  05  CO  o 
lO  CO  CO  LO  LO  LO 
CO  CO  CO  eg  eg  eg 
o o o o o o 


Per  cent  ^ 

2 nitrogen “ 

^ ,2 

O tH 

^ ^ Av.  weight  of  lo 
kernels ^ 


tH  05 

ot^co 

CNi 


00  ^ eg 
o 00  eo 
CO  CO  eo 

o o 


tH  ■Tf  tH  t-  t-  00 

eg  CO  CO  c-  CO  eg 


o LO  eg  th  CO  eg 

7-H  tH  Ttn  O 05 
LO  LO  LO  CO  If  CO 

o o o o o o 


— H d) 

o ^ 

<D  m 

cc 


a o a o “ as  S 


a 

m 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


71 


Second  Line  Selection  of  Upper  and  Lower  Spikes,  and  of 
Upper,  Middle  and  Lower  Spikelets  From  Same  Spike 

This  work  was  carried  on  in  precisely  the  same  way  as  be- 
fore, except  that  in  each  generation  of  resulting  grain  the 
proper  portions  of  the  plants  for  the  succeeding  plantings  were 
separated  out  before  the  grain  was  composited  for  analysis. 
The  result  of  the  three  years’  line-selection,  in  each  case,  are 
shown  in  Table  19.  From  the  results  of  the  analysis  of  the 
samples  of  the  crop  of  1912,  it  is  quite  clear  that  we  have 
arrived  at  a perfectly  uniform  crop,  in  spite  of  the  line-selec- 
tion of  seed  of  quite  variable  composition.  The  obvious  conclu- 
sion is  that  this  kind  of  selection  breeding  for  change  in  compo- 
sition of  the  grain  is  perfectly  futile. 

Whether  or  not  the  greater  increase  in  quantity  of  grain 
and  of  nitrogen,  from  the  lighter  seed,  as  regularly  shown  in 
these  results,  is  a matter  of  practical  importance,  the  writer 
is  unable  to  determine.  The  practice  of  preparing  grain  for 
seeding,  by  fanning  and  screening  out  the  lighter  and  smaller 
kernels  is  generally  recommended  as  a good  one,  since  it  is 
said  that  a better  stand  and  more  thrifty  growth  of  young 
plants  is  secured.  Our  results  show  clearly,  however,  that  the 
same  weight  of  small  kernels  will  yield  a proportionately 
greater  increase  in  total  weight  of  grain  and  of  nitrogen  than 
will  that  weight  of  larger,  heavier  kernels.  If  seed  were  very 
expensive  the  greater  increase  from  the  small  kernels  might  be 
a matter  of  economic  importance,  but  with  the  cost  of  seed 
wheat  so  low  as  it  usually  is,  it  seems  to  the  writer  to  be  doubt- 
ful that  the  saving  in  cost  of  seed  would  be  nearly  sufficient 
to  counterbalance  the  benefits  in  increased  vigor  of  growth 
which  seem  to  result  from  the  use  of  the  ‘^better”  seed. 

Four  Years’  Line  Selection  of  High-  and  Low-Nitrogen  Plants 

The  writer’s  preliminary  investigations  concerning  the  pos- 
sibilities of  securing  an  accurate  sample  for  analysis,  from  a 
plant  bearing  all  its  heads  upon  straws  of  nearly  equal  length, 
by  selecting  the  head  grown  upon  the  straw  of  medium,  or 
average  length,  as  explained  in  detail  in  Bulletin  No.  102,  hav- 
ing shown  the  feasibility  of  this  method  of  sampling  for  selec- 


72 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


tion  purposes,  line  selection  work  on  this  basis  was  commenced 
in  1907.  Forty  plants,  of  uniform  growth,  from  each  of  four 
varieties  of  wheat,  two  fall  varieties  (Red  Russian  and  Jones  ^ 
Fife)  and  two  spring  varieties  (Bluestem  and  Little  Club) 
were  secured  and  a representative  head  from  each  threshed 
out,  and  the  average  weight  and  percentage  of  nitrogn  in  the 
kernels  determined.  From  each  of  the  four  varieties,  the  two 
plants  showing  the  highest,  and  the  two  showing  the  lowest, 
percentage  of  nitrogen  were  selected.  All  the  remaining  grain 
of  these  plants  was  threshed  out,  and,  in  each  case,  the  kernels 
counted  and  weighed,  as  a check  upon  the  accuracy  of  repre- 
sentation af  the  whole  by  the  head  selected  for  analysis.  This 
grain  was  then  planted  in  rows  in  the  cereal  nursery,  and  given 
uniform  cultural  conditions. 

At  harvest  time,  all  the  plants  from  each  of  the  selections, 
when  fully  ripe,  were  pulled  by  hand  and  tied  in  separate 
bundles.  After  complete  curing  in  the  cereal  drying  rooms, 
these  bundles  were  taken  to  the  laboratory.  From  each  bun- 
dle forty  uniform  plants  were  picked  out,  and  the  nitrogen 
content  of  a sample  head  from  each  plant  determined.  As 
soon  as  the  desired  high-nitrogen  and  low-nitrogen  plants  had 
been  selected  for  the  next  season’s  plantings,  this  being  only  a 
single  plant  from  each  bundle,  in  most  cases,  the  remaining 
heads  of  the  other  plants  were  returned  to  the  bundle  from 
which  they  came,  and  all  of  the  grain  from  this  re-united 
bundle  threshed  out,  thoroughly  mixed  and  sampled  for  analy- 
sis to  show  the  effect  upon  this  year’s  crop  of  the  preceding 
year’s  selections. 

In  each  succeeding  year  of  the  experiment  the  same  process 
was  repeated,  except  that  twenty  uniform  plants  were  chosen 
for  the  selection  analyses,  because  the  number  of  plants  and 
consequent  number  of  analyses  required  would  otherwise  reach 
an  almost  prohibitive  volume. 

In  the  first  generation,  four  plants,  two  high-  and  two  low- 
nitrogen,  were  selected  out  of  forty  from  each  of  four  varieties, 
making  a total  of  sixteen  plants  grown  the  first  year.  If  an 
equal  number  of  plants  had  been  selected  from  each  of  these 
sixteen  strains  in  the  next  generation,  there  would  have  been 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat  73 

sixty-four  strains  in  the  experiment,  and  in  each  succeeding 
year  the  number  would  have  been  quadrupled,  thus  making 
an  unwieldy  bulk  of  material.  For  this  reason,  the  number  of 
selected  samples  was  never  allowed  to  go  above  eight  or  ten 
for  each  variety  in  any  one  season,  each  strain  being  dropped 
as  soon  as  the  high-nitrogen  or  low-nitrogen  sample  which  it 
was  desired  to  plant  failed  to  appear  within  that  plant.  This 
gives  a true  line-selection.  It  does  not,  however,  permit  the 
breeder  to  make  any  comparison  of  the  prepotency  of  each 
individual  strain,  in  fixing  its  high-  or  low-nitrogen  character 
upon  its  progeny.  Breeding  in  such  a way  as  to  show  this 
latter  feature  would,  even  in  the  second  generation,  involve 
a large  field  of  plants.  In  our  own  experiments,  for  example, 
if  the  entire  forty  plants  of  each  variety  which  were  sampled 
in  the  beginning  had  been  planted,  the  progeny  in  the  second 
generation  from  these  160  mother  plants  would  have  num^ 
bered  more  than  60,000,  as  plants  usually  carried  400  or  more 
kernels.  Growing  all  the  plants  from  each  analyzed  sample 
would  doubtless  afford  a very  interesting  study  of  the  relative 
power  of  these  plants  to  transmit  their  characteristic  nitrogen- 
content  to  their  progeny  in  the  first  generation,  but  this 
method  could  not  be  used  for  line-selection  purposes  because 
of  the  enormous  numbers  of  plants  which  would  immediately 
result. 

Proceeding  as  described  above,  there  were  analyzed  in  the 
first  selection  representative  heads  from  forty  plants  of  each 
of  four  varieties,  or  a total  of  160  plants.  In  the  second 
selection,  forty  plants  from  each  of  the  four  strains  of  each 
of  the  four  varieties,  or  a total  of  640  samples,  were  analyzed. 
In  the  third,  and  fourth  selections,  twenty  samples  from  each 
of  the  eight  or  ten  strains  of  each  of  the  four  varieties,  or 
from  640  to  800  samples  were  analyzed,  each  year.  The  enor- 
mous mass  of  analytical  data  concerning  the  average  weight 
and  percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  kernels  of  all  of  these  sam- 
ples would  unnecessarily  encumber  this  report.  The  records 
of  the  results  of  these  analyses  are  on  file  in  the  card  records 
of  the  station  laboratory.  The  following  index  to  the  labor- 


74  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

atory  numbers  of  these  samples  will  serve  to  locate  the  data 
for  anyone  who  wishes  to  consult  them. 

Laboratory  Numbers  of  Samples  Analyzed  in  the  Line- Selection 


Variety  Crop  of  1907  1908  1909  1910 

Red  Russian  2020-2059  2851-3010  4201-4400  5101-5300 

Jones’  Fife  2060-2099  3011-3170  4401-4560  5301-5500 

Bluestem  2148-2187  3331-3490  4721-4880  5721-5900 

Little  Club  2108-2147  3171-3330  4561-4720  5501-5700 


The  effect  of  the  line-selection  upon  the  composition  of 
the  resultant  grain  is  shown  in  Tables  20-23,  inclusive. 

At  the  end  of  the  first  year  of  this  work,  the  writer  was 
convinced  that  a definite  effect  of  the  high-  and  low-nitrogen 
selection  was  to  be  observed,  particularly  in  the  fall  varieties, 
and  so  reported  in  an  address  upon  ‘‘Some  Experiments  in 
Breeding  High-Nitrogen  Wheat'V’  read  before  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  American  Society  of  Agronomy.  In  these  fall 
varieties,  the  resultant  grain  from  the  selections  of  high- 
nitrogen  plants  of  Red  Russian  wheat  showed  2.69  per  cent 
and  2.68  per  cent  of  nitrogen  as  against  2.41  per  cent  and 
2.45  per  cent  in  the  grain  from  the  low-nitrogen  plants.  With 
the  Jones’  Fife  wheat,  the  percentages  were  2.17  per  cent 
and  2.18  per  cent  in  the  high-nitrogen  selections;  and  2.03 
per  cent  and  2.14  per  cent  in  the  low-nitrogen  selections. 
Furthermore,  in  making  the  selections  for  the  next  year’s 
plantings  the  plant  having  the  highest  percentage  of  nitrogen 
was  found  among  those  grown  from  the  highest-nitrogen  par- 
ent, and  the  plant  having  the  lowest  percentage  of  nitrogen 
among  those  grown  from  the  lowest-nitrogen  parent,  in  the 
case  of  both  the  fall  varieties  of  wheat.  The  spring  varieties 
did  not  show  the  same  phenomena,  but  it  was  thought  that 
some  unknown  abnormal  condition  might  have  disturbed  the 
heredity  effect.  The  general  results,  therefore,  seemed  very 
encouraging,  and  it  was  the  writer’s  belief  that  a promising 
beginning  in  breeding  high-nitrogen  grain  had  been  made. 
Unfortunately,  however,  in  no  successive  generation  did  this 
effect  appear,  as  will  be  seen  from  an  examination  of  the 
tables.  At  the  present  time,  after  four  years  of  line-selection. 


”Proc.  Am.  Soc.  Agronomy,  1,  (1908)  126-131. 


tss  ts5  IsS  to  to  to 
(ys  eo  «5  «5  ?©  OO 
-<]>(».  to  O “J 
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cn  cn  cn 

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h-i 

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neSoj^iN 

;n0O  JOd 


N% 

0T6I  JO  dojQ 


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• u0Soj;tn 

:^n0O  aej 


•N% 


Table  20. — Four  Years’  Line  Selection  for  High  and  Low  Nitrogen — Red  Russian  Wheat 

1907  Selection  1908  Selection  1909  Selection  1910  Selection 


Table  21. — Four  Years’  Line  Selection  for  High  and  Low  Nitrogen — Jones’  Fife  Wheat 

1907  Selection  1908  Selection  1909  Selection  1910  Selection 


Crop  of  1911  ^ 
%N 


Per  cent 
Nitrogen . 


No. 


CO  CO 
OO  00 
iM*  M 


CD  (M 
CD  JO  t- 
(M  (CQ 


'Z) 

(V  <v 

a a 

lO  ■rH  a 0^05  CD  o 
O tH  o o ® 

CO  CO  fo  CO  TjH 

lo  lo  'j  lo  LO  LO 


t>-a5CD0Ot^- 
T-l  O r-i  o O 
oi  cd  oq  (M* 


00  O UO  CD 
(cq  CO  1-H  (cq  <M 
(cq  (cq  oq  icq  cq 

TJ  'C 

a>  0) 

G Cl. 

CO  oq  eg  00  p 

Q eg  CO  LO  CD  CD  Q 

• ' 


I 


'C  lO  lO  ID  UO  UO  'O 


Crop  of  1910 


%N. 


LD 


Per  cent 
Nitrogen . 


No. 


No. 


No. 


tH  OO  rH 
■H  Tf  CO 


iH  O tH 

tH  eg  oq  oq 
eg  eg  eg'  eg 


05  O ID 
tH  eg  eg 

■H  -H  ttf 
Tf 


Crop  of  1909 
%N 


Per  cent  eg 
Nitrogen . . 


Crop  of  1908  ^ 

%N rH 

eg 

Per  cent  th 

Nitrogen  . . . '^ 


eg 

CO 


eg  eg  eg  eg  eg 


eg  eg 


CD  t- 

eg  Tf 


CD  (D 
G G 

CD  G G^ 

O O 

LD  ID 
tH 


05  tH  00  eg  OO 

tH  CX>  tH  00  tH 


eg  tH  05  eg 
CO  eg  ID 


ID  O 00 
ID  00  O tH 
O O tH  tH 
CO  CO  CO  CO 


■H  tH 
CO  Tf 


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ID  LD 
tH  'H 


tH  00 
c- 


tH  CD 
»D  CD 


to  to 

to 

to 

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CD 

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05  O 

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05 

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CO 

CO  CO 

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CO 

CO  CO 

-a 

05  CO  to  o 

CD 

05  cn 

to 

to 

CD 

CD  CD 

tNS 

to  to  to  CO 

CO 

CO  CO 

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to  05 

M l-i  M M 

M 

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-a  -q 

<^2  ® S 

05 

cn  to 

05  cn 

O 

O 05 

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(D  <D  fl) 
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M h-i 

to 

to 

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CD 

in  cn 

CO  CO 

cn 

CO 

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o' 

to 

to 

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zo  M 

-q 

00 

o 

cn  ^ 

cn  cn 

cn  cn  cn  cn  cn  Pi 

00  5 

oo  oo 

-a  -q  -q  -q  -q  ;:4  . 

l-A  o 

4^  4i-  CO  CO  CO  O 

a> 

a 

o to 

05  CO  -q  CO  oS 

CD 

o 

p 

•ON 


ueSoa:HN 

jaj 


N% 

8061  JO  doao 


•ON 


• • • u^S0J:^IM 

:^U0O  J0(i 


* • •N% 


•ON 


• • u0Soa:^tN 
:^U0D  aaj 


N% 

0X6X  JO  dojo 


bO  00  CO 
Oi  cn 


on  oo 
os 


CO  CO  oo  CO  oo 
O O o M to 
-<1  O M 05  to 


•ON 


uaSo-ixiN 

Xnao  J0J 


CO  oo  CO  oo  oo 


O 1-1 
00  on  05 


o to 
zo  on 


w to  to  CO  to 
h-i  ^ 05  o CD 


N% 

C5  XX6T  JO  dojo 


Table  22. — Four  Years’  Line  Selection  for  High  and  Low  Nitrogen — Bluestem  Wheat 

1907  Selection  1908  Selection  1909  Selection  1910  Selection 


Table  23. — Four  Years’  Line  Selection  for  High  and  Low  Nitrogen — Little  Club  Wheat 


Crop  of  1911 
%N 


g Per  cent 
Nitrogen 
o 

0 

0) 

m 

SNo 

01 


Crop  of  1910 
%N 


g Per  cent 
Nitrogen 


No. 


%N. 


g Per  cent 
'a  Nitrogen . . 


o 

m 

SNo. 


Crop  of  1908 
%N 


g Per  cent 
•43  Nitrogen . 


iH 

05  <M 

tH  to  to 

T— 1 

05 

CO  ^ 

to  to  tH 

<d  <35  iH 

<35 

0 

CO  CO  CO 

CO  C<l  CO 

CO 

CO 

tH  05 

iO  05  t- 

0 CD 

CO 

0 

CO  IjO  05 

to 

CO 

*CO  ^ 

CO  CO  CO 

<c;J  t-h  oq 

<35 

<35 

'd 

<0? 

10  05 

<M  t>  <35 

pji— 1 ''f  0 

0 

CO 

0 0 

<cq  to  in) 

CO 

CO 

UO 

to  to 

tH  CD  CD  CD 

CD 

CD 

10 

to  to 'd  to  to  to 

to 

to 

10 

to  <M 

<M  <M 

tH  00 

00  00 

1—1 

CO 

CO  c<i 

c<i  c<i 

CO 

0 

to  tH 

to  CO 

0 

0 

05  <35 

<M  ij< 

rl< 

(M 

1—1  iH 

1— 1 1— 1 

tH 

'd'd 

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<D  O) 

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ft 

05 

ft  ft^ 

to  0 

ftio 

CO 

0 Q C<1  CO 

to 

0 <35 

10 

Sh  CO  CD 

CD  CD 

CD 

'CJ 'd 

Tt<  rt) 

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00 

t>  rH  CD 

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00  CD 

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CD  t-  CD 

t- 

t-  CD 

1—1 

r-l  tH  T— 1 

T—i 

.td  iH 

CO 

<M  00  CD 

CD 

0 0 

tJh  <M  CO 

Tt< 

to  "iti 

CO 

CO  CO  CO 

c<i 

<35*  05 

05  to  <50 

<M 

CO  05 

t- 

t-  <M  rt) 

to 

00  <35 

r— { 

,H  <M  <C^ 

<35 

05  05 

CO 

CO  CO  CO 

CO 

CO  CO 

K5 

0 

CD 

CD 

05 

<35 

<35 

00 

c<i 

CQ 

cq 

<35* 

T— 1 

CD 

00 

to 

0 

<35 

<35 

<35 

(m’ 

T-i 

r-H 

iH 

00 

CO 

t- 

05 

CO 

1— 1 

T— 1 

T— 1 

tH 

T— 1 

T-l 

1— 1 

(Cq 

<M 

<35 

05 

3329  2.39  1.81  dropped 


The  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat 


79 


the  last  samples  which  were  analyzed  (those  of  the  crop  of 
1911)  showed  that  all  the  selected  strains  of  Red  Russian  and 
Jones’  Fife  wheat  were  as  uniform  in  composition  as  a single 
strain  grown  under  these  conditions  could  possibly  be  ex- 
pected to  be;  that  the  strains  of  Bluestem  which  had  been 
line-selected  for  high  nitrogen  showed  an  average  percentage 
of  nitrogen  a little  lower  than  that  of  the  low-nitrogen  strains ; 
and  that  the  Little  Club  wheat,  alone,  showed  a slightly  higher 
percentage  of  nitrogen  in  the  high  nitrogen  selections  than  in 
the  low-nitrogen  selections.  The  experiment  was,  therefore, 
abandoned. 

The  results  of  all  our  line-selection  work,  therefore,  clearly 
prove  that  high-  or  low-nitrogen  content  is  not  a property  of 
wheat  which  can  be  ‘‘fixed”  by  line-selection.  In  other  words, 
the  chemical  composition  of  wheat  is  entirely  a matter  of  en- 
vironmental influence,  as  shown  in  Part  I.  of  this  report,  and 
not  an  hereditary  character,  which  can  be  varied  at  will  by 
the  plant  breeder. 

It  is  the  writer’s  opinion  that  further  attempts  to  improve 
the  chemical  composition  of  Washington  wheats  by  line-selec- 
tion breeding  would  be  absolutely  useless.  This  conclusion  is 
in  harmony  with  the  opinion  of  some  students  of  genetics,  that 
it  is  impossible  to  establish  new  strains,  or  varieties,  of  self- 
fertilizing plants,  by  selection  alone;  but  that  there  must 
first  be  cross-fertilization,  either  between  different  plants  of 
the  same  variety,  or  plants  of  different  varieties,  in  order  to 
establish  an  heterozygotic  condition  as  the  first  basis  for  selec- 
tion of  new  strains. 

Whether  new  races  of  wheats,  of  improved  chemical  com- 
position, can  be  produced  by  the  other,  or  hybridization, 
method  is,  as  yet,  an  unsolved  question,  but  one  entirely  sep- 
arate from  the  problems  of  cereal  investigations  which  the 
writer  has  conducted  at  the  Washington  Experiment  Station 
for  the  past  seven  years. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 
PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  VETERINARY  SCIENCE 


0 


A Preliminary  Report  on  the  Investigations 
of  Bovine  Red  Water  (Cystic 
Hematuria)  in  Washington 

By  J.  W.  KALKUS 


BULLETIN  No.  112 
October,  1913 


0 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director  ^ , 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


D.  S.  TROY,  President Chimacum 

JAS.  C.  CUNNINGHAM,  Vice-President Spokane 

E.  A.  BRYAN,  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

Pres -dent  of  the  College 

R.  C.  McCROSKEY Garfield 

PETER  McGREGOR Spokane 

LEE  A.  JOHNSON Sunnyside 

STATION  STAFF 

IRA  D.  CARDIFF,  Ph.  D Director  and  Botanist 

ELTON  FULMER,  M.  A State  Chemist 

S.  B.  NELSON,  D.  V.  M Veterinarian 

O.  L.  WALLER,  Ph.  M Irrigation  Engineer 

A.  L.  MELANDER,  M.  S Entomologist 

O.  M.  MORRIS,  B.  S Horticulturist 

GEO.  W.  SEVERANCE,  B.  S Agriculturist 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S Soil  Physicist 

A.  B.  NYSTROM,  M.  S Dairy  Husbandman 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S Chemist 

W.  T.  SHAW.  B.  Agr.,  M.  S Zoologist 

R.  C.  ASHBY,  B.  S Animal  Husbandman 

J.  G.  HALL,  M.  A Plant  Pathologist 

E.  G.  SCHAFER,  M.  S. . Agronomist 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  D.  V.  S Assistant  Veterinarian 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A Assistant  Bacteriologist 

M.  A.  YOTHERS,  B.  S Assistant  Entomologist 

HENRY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S Assistant  Cerealist 

C.  F.  MONROE,  B.  S.  A Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

W.  J.  YOUNG,  B.  S Assistant  Horticulturist 

C.  B.  SPRAGUE,  B.  S Assistant  in  Horticulture 

D.  C.  GEORGE,  B.  S V Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

C.  K.  MCWILLIAMS,  M.  A Assistant  Chemist 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN ^ .Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

ELLA  W.  BROCK.  .> Executive  Clerk 


Q^O.l 

Xr 

_ \\2.- 

^0  V 

Cw  y I 

A Preliminary  Report  on  the  Investigations  of  Bovine 
Red  Water  (Cystic  Hematuria)  in  Washington 


INTRODUCTION 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  the  disease  here  under  consideration 
is  not  a widespread  one,  few  veterinarians  outside  of  the  dis- 
tricts where  it  occurs  have  had  acquaintance  with  it.  It  is  a 
disease  peculiar  to  certain  localities  and  in  this  State  is  quite 
prevalent  in  the  coastal  region.  Many  cases  are  to  be  found 
on  the  numerous  islands  in  Puget  Sound  and  the  infected  area 
extends  inland  some  sixty  miles. 

Accurate  data  as  to  the  percentage  of  cattle  affected  are 
difficult  to  obtain,  but  from  statistics  gathered  by  the  author 
it  is  estimated  that  about  thirteen  per  cent  of  the  cattle  in 
red  water  districts  have  the  disease.  Inquiry  discloses  the  fact 
that  this  disease  has  been  known  here  for  some  twenty-five 
or  thirty  years,  and  at  times  has  been  so  prevalent  as  to  cause 
numerous  dairymen  to  go  out  of  business. 

The  study  of  red  water  was  fist  taken  up  at  this  Station 
in  1908  by  Dr.  W.  E.  Ralston,  who  was  at  that  time  a member 
of  the  Experiment  Station  Staff.  Dr.  Ralston’s  investigations 
were  carried  on  with  four  red  water  cows,  which  Avere  shipped 
to  the  Station,  and  consisted  of  daily  observations,  the  making 
of  blood  and  urine  examinations  and  thorough  autopsies  on 
three  of  the  cases  Avith  a vieAv  to  determining  the  cause  of  the 
disease.  These  studies  disclosed  nothing  definite  as  to  the 
etiology  of  the  disease.  Owing  to  the  fact  that  Dr.  Ralston’s 
time  Avas  to  be  chiefly  devoted  to  other  lines  of  Avork,  the  in- 
vestigation of  red  water  was  assigned  in  February,  1910,  to  the 
author. 

It  is  the  purpose  of  this  bulletin  to  describe  the  character- 
istics, symptoms,  course  and  termination  of  this  disease  as  it 
occurs  in  Washington,  together  with  a report  upon  the  various 
experiments  thus  far  carried  out. 

Red  AA^ater,  more  properly  “cystic  hematuria,”  and  vari- 


4 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


ously  known  as  bloody  urine,  red  urine,  smoky  urine,  hema- 
turia, enzootic  hematuria,  cystic  hemangiomatosis  and  'moor 
ill,  is  a specific  disease  of  cattle.  It  is  characterized  clinically 
by  the  constant  or  periodic  discharge  of  bloody  urine  and  by 
its  chronic  course;  and  pathologically  by  the  characteristic  vas- 
cular lesions  which  occur  on  the  bladder  mucosa. 

The  disease  has  been  seen  in  cows  ranging  in  age  from 
twenty-eight  months  to  fifteen  years;  but  the  majority  of  cases 
occur  in  cows  ranging  in  age  from  five  to  eight  years.  ^Accord- 
ing to  reports  from  various  stockmen  in  red  water  districts 
bulls  and  steers  are  sometimes  affected,  but  the  writer  has 
never  had  a case  come  under  his  observation.  Likewise,  the 
disease  has  not  been  seen  in  heifers  before  calving. 

Breed  seems  to  have  no  influence  upon  the  disease,  as  it  has 
been  seen  in  all  of  the  standard  dairy  breeds  and  grade  cattle. 
It  is  seldom  seen  in  beef  cattle  because  in  districts  where  red 
water  occurs  dairying  is  the  chief  industry  and  beef  cattle  are 
not  very  numerous. 

As  to  the  geographical  distribution  of  red  water  some  very 
peculiar  and  inexplicable  facts  are  encountered.  As  previously 
stated,  the  disease  is  prevalent  in  this  State,  west  of  the  Cas- 
cade Mountains.  Here  the  country  is  rough  and  hilly  and  the 
soil  varies  in  different  localities ; we  may  find  a yellow  or  red 
clay,  shot  clay,  sandy  black  soil  or  a pure  black  soil.  For  the 
most  part  the  country  is  new  and  a large  part  of  the  land  is 
not  under  cultivation  and  abounds  in  ferns,  slal,  moss  and  a 
great  variety  of  evergreens;  here  cattle  are  allowed  to  run 
daily  and  the  eating  of  fern  has  been  considered  by  stockmen 
to  be  a factor  in  the  cause  of  red  water.  It  is  the  general  con- 
census of  opinion  that  the  disease  occurs  only  in  cattle  that 
are  kept  on  what  is  called  upland  or  highland,  the  elevation  of 
which  varies  from  100  to  1000  feet,  and  this  fact  has  been 
verified  by  the  writer’s  observation.  So  Avell  is  this  known 
that  prospective  buyers  are  warned  against  purchasing  upland 
cattle  for  fear  that  they  might  have  red  water. 

*Since  this  bulletin  has  been  written  the  author  has  encountered 
in  his  investigations  two  cases  of  red  water  in  bulls. 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


5 


tThe  valleys  or  bottom  lands  are  notoriously  free  from  the 
disease,  as  are  also  peat  and  salt  marshes.  The  writer  has  en- 
countered many  cases  on  upland,  a few  on  farms  which  are 
composed  of  both  upland  and  valley,  and  one  case  that  was 
kept  on  exclusively  bottom  land.  This  latter  case  developed 
in  a cow  a1n:>ut  fifteen  years  of  age — one  of  a herd  of  forty-five 
head.  Tl.e  owner  slaved  that  he  had  lived  on  the  place  about 
five  years,  had  always  kept  from  forty  to  fifty  head  of  cattle, 
but  had  never  before  had  a case  of  red  water,  in  fact,  red  water 
was  not  common  in  that  particular  locality.  At  the  time  this 
animal  was  examined  she  was  passing  bloody  urine,  but  as  she 
was  in  good  physical  condition  the  owner  would  not  consent 
to  have  her  killed  and  autopsied.  The  cow  soon  died,  but  un- 
fortunately no  autopsy  was  performed  and  it  is  possible  that 
the  hematuria  manifested  was  due  to  some  other  condition 
involving  the  urinary  tract  than  the  one  here  under  con- 
sideration. 

Probably  the  most  striking  peculiarity  of  the  disease  is  the 
fact  that  only  certain  animals  in  a herd  seem  to  be  predisposed 
to  the  affection,  while  the  majority  are  apparently  immune. 
It  is  essentially  a sporadic  disease  and  it  is  impossible  to  say 
which  cow  in  a herd  is  liable  to  become  affected.  At  times  a 
number  of  cows  in  a herd  may  become  affected  during  the 
period  of  a few  months  or  a year  and  following  this  there  may 
be  no  new  cases  develop  for  years.  Again  some  cows  may  be 
brought  to  a red  water  district,  contract  the  disease  soon  after 
arrival  and  die  as  a result ; other  animals,  although  kept  under 
identical  environments,  in  constant  association  with  the 
former  and  receiving  the  same  care  and  feed,  may  live  for 

fRecent  investigations  by  the  author  have  revealed  the  fact  that 
in  some  localities  red  water  occurs  on  bottom  lands  which  have 
been  thoroughly  cultivated  and  seeded  to  tame  grasses.  This  is 
particularly  true  in  the  vicinity  of  Monroe  and  Sultan.  On  one 

farm  belonging  to  Mr.  L near  Monroe  seven  in  a herd  of  18 

cows  were  found  affectd.  These  animals  are  kept  on  a river  bottom 
pasture  of  about  twenty  acres  on  which  there  is  a good  stand  of 
timothy  and  clover.  The  land  is  all  cleared  and  the  only  wild  plants 
that  could  be  found  were  a few  ferns.  The  owner  stated  that  he 
had  lived  on  the  place  seventeen  years  and  that  cultivation  of  the 
land  did  not  seem  to  decrease  the  number  of  red  water  cases 
occurring  yearly  on  the  farm. 


6 Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

years  and  never  contract  the  disease.  On  some  farms  red 
water  is  at  times  so  prevalent  as  to  affect  fifty  per  cent  or 
more  of  the  cattle.  The  writer  has  in  mind  one  small  farm 
on  which  four  out  of  eight  cows  contracted  the  disease  within 
a period  of  six  months.  Other  farms,  at  times  adjoining,  are 
entirely  free  from  the  disease,  or  there  may  be  cases  develop- 
ing at  intervals  of  a year  or  mroe. 

A few  cases  of  red  water  have  also  been  reported  in 
Eastern  Washington  and  two  of  these  came  under  the  writer’s 
observation.  The  first  was  on  a farm  near  Rockford,  situated 
at  an  elevation  of  about  3200  feet  and  in  the  heart  of  a pine 
woods.  Pine  and  fir  trees,  moss  and  fern  were  in  abundance 
and  thus  the  vegetation  wnis  much  like  that  found  in  red  water 
districts  in  the  costal  region.  The  other  case  w^as  near  Dayton, 
under  very  similar  conditions. 

Etiology 

The  exact  cause  of  red  water  has  not  as  yet  been  deter- 
mined. Many  theories  have  been  advanced,  none  of  which 
have  been  verified  satisfactorily  by  observation  or  experi- 
mentation. Probably  the  first  that  can  be  considered  is  for- 
age as  an  etiological  factor.  Many  stockmen  are  of  the  opinion 
that  the  disease  is  caused  by  the  eating  of  ferns,  especially 
when  these  plants  are  producing  spores.  Others  attribute  it 
to  the  eating  of  pine  or  fir  shoots,  moss  and  various  other 
plants  which  abound  in  these  districts. 

That  foodstuffs  may  be  a factor  in  the  cause  of  the  disease 
is  evidenced  by  the  fact  that  wherever  red  water  has  been 
observed  the  vegetation  was  always  similar  if  not  identical. 
On  the  other  hand,  there  is  much  evidence  to  disprove  this 
theory,  although  experiments  in  feeding  various  plants  have  not 
been  carried  out  at  this  station.  (1)  In  diseases  of  the  blad- 
der, when  due  to  some  irritating  substance  obtained  by  inges- 
tion, we  always  expect  to  find:  (a)  some  derangement  of  the 
intestinal  canal,  and  (b)  pathological  changes  in  the  liver  or 
kidneys  or  both.  Derangements  of  the  intestinal  canal  would 
of  course  be  encountered  during  the  onset  of  the  disease  and 
unfortunately  the  twelve  cases  autopsied  have  all  been  of 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


7 


over  a year’s  standing.  However,  symptoms  of  intestinal  dis- 
turbance have  not  been  seen  in  the  onset  of  the  disease.  On 
the  other  hand,  we  would  expect  pathological  changes,  if  there 
were  such  in  the  liver  and  kidneys  to  persist;  knowing  as  we 
do  that  the  regenerating  power  of  the  epithelium  of  these 
organs  is  practically  nil.  Of  course  it  is  possible  that  irritat- 
ing substances  could  be  of  such  low  grade  as  to  produce  only  a 
congestion;  but  in  this  case  if  the  condition  was  long  con- 
tinued, as  it  no  doubt  would  be,  we  would  at  least  expect  to 
find  fibrosis  of  the  kidneys.  In  nine  out  of  twelve  autopsy 
cases  the  writer  found  the  kidneys  and  liver  free  from  pri- 
mary lesions.  Tn  two  cases  the  liver  showed  a chronic  inter- 
stitial inflammation  as  the  result  of  fluke  infestation  and  in 
the  third,  one  kidney  contained  an  anaemic  infarct  of  unknown 
origin.  (2)  When  animals  contract  local  lesions  from  the  in- 
gestion of  foodstuffs,  the  removal  of  such  noxious  material 
and  a change  of  feed  usually  brings  about  a prompt  recovery. 

Many  stockmen  contend  that  a change  of  feed  will  some- 
times render  immediate  relief.  Some  even  declare  that  if  a 
cow  affected  with  red  water  is  removed  from  high  to  low 
land  and  given  a complete  change  of  feed,  she  will  very  often 
recover  completely.  That  such  a change  will  bring  relief  and 
temporary  subsidence  of  the  symptoms  can  not  be  denied;  but 
the  writer  has  never  seen  a permanent  recovery  in  an  animal 
affected  with  the  disease.  Again,  there  is  much  evidence  to 
show  that  change  of  feed  and  environmient  does  not  cause  any 
appreciable  change  in  symptoms,  e.  g.,  the  reader’s  attention 
is  called  to  the  following:  During  the  summer  of  1908  four 
red  water  cows  were  brought  to  this  Station  for  experimental 
study.  Three  of  these  animals  died  of  the  disease  in  less  than 
a year’s  time  after  their  arrival.  The  fourth  cow  (Fig.  II.) 
has  now  been  at  the  Station  four  years  and  has  not  made  a 
recovery.  This  animal,  since  being  brought  to  the  Station 
has  always  been  kept  in  a small  enclosure  and  has  been  well 
fed  and  watered;  no  special  care  has  been  given  her  nor  has 
she  received  any  treatment.  She  has  been  observed  almost 
daily  and  always  seems  in  fairly  good  condition;  at  times  the 
urine  is  very  red  in  color  and  may  contain  clots,  but  at  other 


B Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

times  it  may  be  found  perfectly  clear.  After  studying  this  case 
carefully  it  would  seem  that  neither  feed  nor  environment 
could  be  considered  as  an  etiological  factor  in  red  water.  This 
animal  was  removed  from  a red  water  district,  shipped  some 
four  hundred  miles  across  the  State  to  a location  where  the 
climate  and  vegetation  is  vastly  different  and  where  red  water 
IS  unknown.  She  was  kept  in  close  quarters  and  fed  only 
well-cured  tame  hay,  but  not  withstanding  this  change  she 
has  continued  to  pass  bloody  urine  for  four  years. 

The  possibility  of  piroplasma  infection  being  the  cause  of 
red  water  has  been  given  serious  consideration  during  the  in- 
vestigation and  blood  smears  have  been  obtained  from  affected 
animals  in  every  stage  of  the  disease.  These  smears  were 
stained  wdth  Giemsa’s,  Jenner’s  and  Wright’s  stains  and  care- 
iully  examined  with  high  power  microscopic  objectiveSj  but 
so  far  as  the  presence  of  prtozoa  was  concerned  the  findings 
were  negative.  Furthermore,  an  attempt  was  made  to  trans- 
mit the  disease  by  blood  inoculation  from  a sick  to  a healthy 
cow,  the  results  of  which  are  here  recorded: 

Red  Water  Inoculation  Experiment  No.  1 

Subject — A grade  Shorthorn  cow,  three  years  old. 

Source  of  blood  used  and  method  of  inoculation: 

On  June  10,  1911,  five  cubic  centimeters  of  blood  were  ob- 
tained from  the  jugular  vein  of  red  water  case  No.  6 under 
strictly  aseptic  conditions.  An  area  over  the  jugular  vein  was 
shaved  and  cleansed  with  eighty  per  cent  alcohol.  A sterile 
hypodermic  needle  was  introduced  into  the  distended  vein 
and  a five  cc.  sterile  syringe  filled  with  the  blood.  This  blood 
was  then  injected,  before  coagulation,  into  the  subcutaneous 
tissue  of  experimental  cow  No.  1,  the  point  of  injection  having 
previously  been  shaved  and  cleansed  with  eighty  per  cent 
alcohol. 

Red  water  case  No.  6 was  a cow  that  had  been  affected 
with  ^hematuria  since  April,  1910.  At  the  time  her  blood  was 

♦Hematuria  as  here  used  and  as  used  throughout  this  bulletin 
refers  only  to  the  cystic  hermaturia  as  defined  in  the  fore  part  of 
this  article. 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


9 


vised  in  this  experiment  she  was  much  emaciated,  passing 
large  quantities  of  blood,  sometimes  clotted,  from  the  blad- 
der and  very  anemic;  blood  examination  showed  the  hemo- 
globin (Tallquist  scale)  to  be  seventy  five  per  cent;  red  blood 
corpuscles  3,480,000,  and  white  blood  corpuscles  4000  per 
cubic  millimeter. 

The  blood  at  the  point  of  injection  in  experimental  cow 
No.  1 was  rapidly  absorbed  and  no  swelling  developed.  A 
daily  temperature  record  was  kept  of  this  animal,  blood 
counts  were  made  at  irregular  intervals  and  a diligent  search 
made  for  appearance  of  protozoa  in  blood  smears  for  a period 
of  six  weeks.  At  no  time  did  the  temperature  rise  above 
102.4  degrees  Fahrenheit.  Anemia  never  developed,  protozoa 
could  at  no  time  be  demonstrated  nor  was  there  any  evidence 
of  blood  in  the  urine.  The  cow  was  kept  under  close  observa- 
tion until  October  13,  1911,  but  as  no  symptoms  of  hematuria 
developed  the  experiment  was  considered  negative  and  dis- 
continued. 

Besides  the  foregoing  inoculation  experiment,  a large  num- 
ber of  guinea  pigs  and  rabbits  were  inoculated,  both  sub- 
cutaneously and  intraperitoneally  with  blood  of  red  water 
cows.  These  inoculations,  however,  never  seemed  to  cause  a 
particle  of  inconvenience  to  the  experimental  animals  nor 
could  pathological  lesions  be  demonstrated. 

It  is  a well  known  fact  that  the  seat  of  piroplasma  infec- 
tion is  in  the  blood.  The  piroplasmata  inhabit  the  red  blood 
cells,  causing  their  destruction  and  thus  liberating  the  hemo- 
globin which  is  partly  excreted  by  the  kidneys,  causing  a red 
discoloration  of  the  urine.  This  condition  is  then  termed 
hemoglobinuria  and  the  urine  in  this  case  does  not  contain 
red  blood  cells. 

On  the  other  hand,  hematuria  is  a condition  in  which  there 
is  always  an  admixture  of  the  cellular  elements  of  the  blood 
in  the  urine,  due  to  a hemorrhage  from  the  bladder  wall. 
Buch  lesions  as  are  seen  in  hematuria  are  not  found  in  true 
piroplasmosis  and  it  is  hardly  possible  that  the  same  kind  of 
organism  could  cause  both  conditions. 


10  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

The  theory  of  flukes  as  a causative  agent  of  hematuria 
was  advanced  by  Galtier  in  1892.  According  to  his  theory  the 
liver,  being  affected  by  the  growth  of  liver  flukes,  no  longer 
performs  its  proper  work  of  destroying  toxins  and  if  under 
these  conditions  the  animals  eat  improper  food  containing 
ranunculaceae,  sedges,  rushes,  etc.,  the  toxic  principles  of 
these  plants  are  absorbed.  These  principles,  he  adds,  being 
no  longer  destroyed!,  are  eliminated  by  the  kidneys,  their  stay 
in  the  bladder  causes  irritation,  and  hemorrhagic  cystitis  is 
set  up,  this  being  afterwards  maintained  by  microbic  agents 
in  the  bladder. 

Not  only  is  this  theory  an  unlikely  one.  but  according  to 
the  writer’s  investigation  it  can  be  readily  refuted.  Of  the 
twelve  red  water  cows  autopsied  at  this  Station  only  two 
w^ere  infested  with  liver  flukes.  This  is  no  doubt  sufficient 
evidence  to  dispense  with  the  liver  fluke  theory. 

J.  Burton  Cleland  of  Sydney,  N.  S.  W.,  in  an  article  en- 
titled “Endemic  Haematuria”  in  Cattle,  and  published  in 
Vol.  VI.  No.  2 of  “The  Journal  of  Tropical  Vet.  Sci.,”  suggests 
the  possibility  of  this  disease  being  caused  by  pentastomes. 
This  investigator  points  out  that  “In  four  cows  suffering 
from  advanced  red  water,  living  larval  pentastomes  were^ 
easily  found  in  the  mesenteric  lymph  glands ; and,  in  addition, 
there  were,  in  some  cases,  very  numerous,  calcified  remains  of 
dead  ones.” 

This  observer  goes  on  to  state,  however,  that  he  has  foun^ 
pentastomes  in  cattle  from  districts  unaffected  with  hema- 
turia, but  he  thinks  that  the  parasites  are  more  numerous  in 
red  water  cases. 

As  to  the  theory  of  production  of  red  water  the  article 
goes  on  to  say,  “The  suggestion  of  their  causal  relationship 
rests  on  the  possibility  that  in  the  migrations  of  the  larval 
pentastomes,  either  originally  when  making  their  way  from 
the  intestines  or  after  their  encystment  in  the  mesenteric 
glands,  they  reach  the  bladder  and  eventually  pierce  its  wall, 
remaining,  however,  sufficiently  long  in  the  submucous  spaces 
to  produce  meehanicall}^  or  by  a toxic  element  changes  in  the 
vascular  spaces  leading  to  the  development  of  small  angio- 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water  11 

mata,  whose  walls  rupturing  towards  the  bladder  possibly  per- 
mit of  the  escape  of  the  larvae  in  the  urine.”  The  author 
further  states,  however,  that  ‘‘The  larval  pentastomes  have 
not  so  far  been  detected  in  the  bladder.” 

In  this  State  pentastomiasis  is  rarely  if  ever  seen  and  the 
writer  has  never  noted  the  presence  of  pentastomes  in  red 
water  cattle  w^hich  he  has  autopsied. 

The  possibility  of  Bilharzia  being  a causative  factor  in  cys- 
tic hematuria,  as  well  as  other  forms  of  blood  parasites,  has 
also  been  given  serious  attention. 

Thorough  search  of  the  urine  and  blood  of  affected  animals, 
both  during  life  and  on  autops}",  has  failed  to  reveal  the  pres- 
ence of  adult  parasites  or  their  ova.  Unfortunately,  as  before 
stated,  most  of  the  autopsies  performed  have  been  on  animals 
in  advanced  stages  of  the  disease.  It  is  hoped  that  in  the 
future  a number  of  autopsies  may  be  performed  on  recently 
affected  cows.  In  such  cases,  no  doubt  the  chances  of  finding 
blood  parasites,  if  they  be  present,  would  be  much  better 
than  in  the  later  stages  when  they  may  largely  disappear  from 
the  blood  stream. 

Coccidiosis  has  been  considered  as  a possible  cause  of 
hematuria  and  the  writer  was  rather  agreeably  surprised  one 
day  while  making  a microscopic  examination  of  a red  water 
bladder  *lesion  (Figs  VIII.  and  IX.)  to  find  large  cells  that 
resembled  coccidia.  A very  careful  study  was  made  of  these 
cells  and  it  was  later  decided  that  they  were  probably  of 
epithelial  origin.  Similar  cells  have  not  been  found  in  other 
cases  and  hence  I can  not  say  at  this  time  what  their  signifi- 
cance in  red  water  lesions  may  be. 

As  the  lesions  of  hematuria  occur  primarily  in  the  bladder, 
it  would  seem  that  the  causative  agent  could  be  discovered 
at  some  time  during  the  course  of  the  disease  at  this  point. 
Assuming  this  to  be  the  case,  a great  deal  of  attention  has 
been  directed  to  the  study  of  the  urine  and  bladder  lesions. 

Bacterial  cultures  have  been  made  on  all  the  standard  media 
from  urine  of  cows  in  various  stages  of  the  disease.  In  the 


♦These  lesions  will  be  dealt  with  in  detail  under  morbid  anatomy. 


12 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


onset  of  the  disease  these  cultures  sometimes  remained  sterile, 
at  other  times  thej^  contained  a variety  of  organisms.  In 
advanced  stages  of  the  disease  the  growtlis  were  always  plenti- 
ful. In  all  cases  these  organisms  proved  to  be  some  of  the 
common  saprophytes  and  ])y()genic  eocci  and  were  non-patho 
genic  to  guinea  pigs  and  rabbits. 

Whenever  possil)le  cultures  were  also  made  from  the  blad- 
der lesions;  these  usually  remained  sterile,  especially  when  the 
lesions  were  purely  vascular.  In  a few  cases  growths  occurred, 
but  always  from  lesions  which  were  apparently  secondarily 
infected.  The  organisms  obtained  proved  to  be  pyogeiiic 
micrococci  of  very  low  viruleney  and  were  not  pathogenic  to 
small  laboratory  animals. 

As  no  uniform  results  could  be  obtained  by  the  ordinary 
cultural  methods  from  the  urine  or  bladder  lesions  it  was 
decided  to  try  direct  inoculation  of  a healthy  cow  with  the 
bladder  lesions  of  a sick  one,  and  following  is  a record  of  this 
experiment. 

Red  Water  Inoculation  Experiment  No.  II. 

Source  of  material  used : 

October  13,  1911,  a cow  affected  with  red  water  (Case 
No,  3),  a case  of  about  fifteen  months  standing  and  in  the  last 
stages  of  the  disease,  was  killed  and  immediately  autopsied. 
The  bladder  was  carefully  removed,  emptied  of  its  bloody  con- 
tents, inverted  and  placed  in  a jar  of  normal  sterile  salt  solu- 
tion. (This  bladder  (Fig.  IV.)  was  well  studded  with  lesions, 
most  of  which  were  small ; the  picture  was  taken  after  the  two 
largest  lesions  were  removed.)  Two  typical  lesions  about  half 
an  inch  in  diameter  were  removed  from  the  mucous  membrane, 
placed  in  a sterile  mortar  and  triturated  in  five  cc.  of  sterile 
normal  salt  solution.  The  material  was  then  filtered  through 
sterile  gauze  in  order  to  remove  the  larger  shreds  of  tissue  and 
the  fluid  thus  obtained  used  for  the  inoculation.  During  the 
preparation  of  this  material  the  work  was  done  under  as  nearly 
aseptic  conditions  as  possible  and  kept  at  body  temperature. 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


13 


It  was  used  for  inoculation  in  less  than  one  hour’s  time  of  the 
death  of  the  cow  from  which  it  was  obtained. 

Method  of  inoculation:  Experimental  cow  No.  2 was  cast 
in  a dorsal  position  with  legs  extended  and  securely  tied.  The 
hair  on  the  posterior  part  of  fhe  udder  and  over  the  pubic 
region  was  shaved  off  and  the  parts  thoroughly  cleansed  with 
bichlbride  solution  and  painted  with  tincture  of  iodine.  An 
incision  about  six  inches  in  length  was  made  through  the  skin 
in  the  median  line  just  anterior  to  the  pubis,  thus  separating  the 
two  posterior  quarters  of  the  udder.  After  separating  and 
tearing  down  the  fascia  the  incision  was  carried  through  the 
linea  alba  and  peritoneum  and  made  sufficiently  large  to  admit 
the  hand.  The  hand  was  then  introduced  into  the  abdominal 
cavity  and  the  bladder  drawn  up  through  the  opening  and  held, 
while  an  assistant  injected  into  the  submucosa  at  several  dif- 
ferent points  with  a hypodermic  syringe,  the  material  pre- 
viously prepared  and  described  above.  The  bladder  was  then 
carefully  replaced  and  the  incision  in  the  peritoneum  and 
linea  alba  well  sutured  with  heavy  catgut ; the  skin  wound  was 
left  open.  When  the  cow  was  allowed  to  rise  she  immediately 
attempted  to  urinate,  and  there  was  marked  straining,  due  to 
the  irritation  of  the  bladder.  This  straining  continued  for 
three  days  after  the  operation,  but  subsided  on  the  fourth. 

On  October  19,  six  days  after  the  operation,  a quantity  of 
urine  was  caught  during  the  act  of  micturition.  This  urine  had 
a distinct  red  color  and  when  sedimented  showed  a precipitate 
of  blood.  Miscroscopic  examination  showed  large  numbers 
of  red  blood  cells,  some  leucocytes,  bladder  epithelium  and 
mucus.  October  20  the  urine  was  secured  with  a soft  rubber 
catheter.  The  process  of  catheterization  caused  an  undue 
amount  of  straining  and  the  urine  contained  a large  amount  of 
blood,  indicating  that  there  was  still  some  inflammatory  dis- 
turbance as  a result  of  the  initial  operation.  Following  this, 
in  order  to  prevent  further  irritation  to  the  bladder,  the  use  of 
the  catheter  was  abandoned  for  a period  of  six  weeks.  During 
this  time  the  character  of  the  urine,  noted  almost  daily. 


14  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

always  contained  blood,  but  never  in  sufficient  quantities  to 
cause  clotting. 

Following  the  operation  of  this  cow  a daily  record  was  kept 
of  her  temperature  for  a period  of  five  weeks ; the  highest  tem- 
perature recorded  during  this  time  was  102.4  degrees.  She 
was  observed  almost  daily  until  her  death,  seven  months  after 
inoculation.  The  urine  was  always  found  to  contain  blood,  the 
amount  varying  at  different  times,  and  anemia  became  quite 
marked  about  two  months  before  death.  The  abdominal  oper- 
ative wound  showed  no  evidence  of  infection  at  any  time  and 
healed  rapidly  by  primary  union. 

This  cow  was  killed  May  9,  1912;  she  was  much  emaciated, 
down  and  unable  to  rise. 

Post  mortem  findings : The  carcass  was  much  emaciated 
and  anemic.  Blood  coagulated  slowly.  The  cells  of  the  liver 
and  kidneys  showed  a granular  degeneration.  All  other  organs 
except  the  bladder  were  normal.  The  bladder  (Pig.  VI.)  con- 
tained several  ounces  of  bloody  urine  that  showed  five  per  cent 
solids  when  centrifuged.  The  greater  portion  of  the  mucosa 
showed  a marked  injection  of  the  blood  vessels;  there  were 
several  somewhat  diffuse  hemorrhagic  submucous  areas,  which 
resembled  miscroscopically  (Fig.  XIV.)  those  found  in  natural 
eases  of  red  water,  but  there  were  no  pedunculated  lesions. 

From  the  foregoing  result  it  would  seem  that  it  is  possible 
to  produce  red  water  by  inoculation  of  a healthy  cow  with  the 
bladder  lesions  of  a sick  one ; but  the  question  immediately 
arises,  is  this  artificially  produced  hematuria  due  to  the 
mechanical  irritation  caused  by  Ihe  operation  or  is  it  the  result 
of  some  living  organism,  which  is  yet  to  be  isolated? 

In  order  to  decide  this  point  a control  experiment  was  car- 
ried out  in  which  a healthy  cow  was  operated  upon  in  exactly 
the  same  way  as  experimental  cow  No.  2.  However,  instead 
of  using  the  lesions  from  the  bladder  of  a red  water  cow  for 
inoculation,  ten  cc.  of  normal  salt  solution  was  used.  This 
animal  also  showed  the  post  operative  bloody  urine  which  first 
appeared  five  days  after  the  operation,  but  cleared  up  entirely 
by  the  tenth  day  and  remained  clear.  The  abdominal  operative 
wound  healed  without  suppuration  and  by  primary  union ; the 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


15 


temperature  never  rose  above  normal.  Eight  months  after  the 
operation  this  cow  was  killed  and  her  bladder  was  found  to 
be  absolutely  normal.  The  fact  that  the  discharge  of  bloody 
urine  ceased  so  soon  after  operation  in  this  case  and  that  the 
animal  made  a complete  recovery,  would  seem  to  indicate  that 
it  requires  something  more  than  mere  mechanical  irritation  to 
produce  such  lesions  and  the  continual  hemorrhages  that  are 
seen  in  hematuria. 

Two  other  cows,  experimental  subjects  Nos.  IV.  and  V.,  were 
inoculated  with  the  bladder  lesions  and  urine  respectively  of 
red  water  experimental  cow  No.  II.  The  modus  operand!  in 
these  cases  was  the  same  as  that  of  experimental  case  No.  2. 
Unfortunately  cow  No.  IV.  died  of  peritonitis  three  days  after 
inoculation  as  a result  of  the  operation.  The  other  cow  (sub- 
ject No.  V.)  was  inoculated  with  urine  May  9,  1912.  At  this 
writing,  ten  months  after  inoculation,  she  is  apparently  normal. 
Her  urine  showed  an  admixture  of  blood  for  ten  days  follow- 
ing the  operation,  then  cleared  up  and  has  remained  normal. 

No  other  species  of  animals  have  been  used  in  experiments 
such  as  those  just  described.  Many  rabbits  and  guinea  pigs 
have,  however,  been  inoculated,  both  subcutaneously  and  intra- 
peritoneally,  with  bladder  lesions  and  urine  from  red  water 
cows,  but  no  pathological  changes  have  resulted  from  these 
inoculations. 

From  the  experiments  thus  far  carried  on  it  is  impossible  to 
say  whether  red  water  is  transmissible  or  not,  but  judging  from 
the  results  obtained  it  Avould  be  well  to  carry  on  further  work 
with  the  microbic  hypothesis  kept  constantly  in  mind. 

Symptoms 

To  the  uninitiated  about  the  first  symptom  that  presents 
itself  is  the  passing  of  bloody  urine.  Those  that  are  better 
acquainted  with  the  disease  usually  notice  that  some  days  be- 
fore the  appearance  of  bloody  urine  the  affected  cow  urinates 
quite  frequently.  The  act  is  accompanied  with  some  straining 
,and  much  switching  of  the  tail  and  the  urine  is  scanty.  When 
the  urine  becomes  bloody  it  may  either  be  uniformly  red  in 
color  or  the  greater  portion  may  be  passed  clear,  with  just  a 


16  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

tinge  of  red  as  the  act  of  micturition  terminates.  Further  than 
this  no  other  symptoms  are  noticed;  the  animal  seems  in  per- 
fect health,  the  appetite  is  good,  the  temperature,  pulse  and 
respiration  are  normal  and  the  milk  flow  unaltered. 

In  a heifer  having  her  first  calf  these  symptoms  come  on 
after  parturition,  but  in  a milk  cow  they  may  become  manifest 
before  calving.  The  writer  has  never  observed  red  water  in  a 
heifer  before  calving  nor  in  a sterile  cow. 

This  first  attack  may  last  only  a few  days  or  again  it  may 
continue  for  weeks  or  months.  If  it  lasts  only  a few  days  the 
urine  clears  up  and  the  condition  is  frequently  attributed  to 
one  of  a number  of  simple  causes,  such  as  injury  during  partu- 
rition, a fall  or  a kick  or  some  form  of  forage  material.  If 
the  condition  continues  for  a longer  period  of  time,  the  urine 
remains  bloody,  varying  in  color  from  light  to  deep  red,  re- 
sembling at  times  pure  blood  and  even  containing  clots.  This 
color  of  course  depends  upon  the  severity  of  the  hemorrhage 
within  the  bladder. 

The  urine,  probably  because  of  the  salts  it  contains,  pre- 
vents to  a marked  extent  the  clotting  of  blood.  To  what  ex- 
tent this  property  is  manifested  in  the  living  animal  has  not 
been  determined.  Samples  of  urine  taken  from  red  water 
cows  in  which  no  clots  were  present  have  shown  as  high  as 
ten  per  cent  corpuscles  on  centrifuging. 

In  experiments  outside  of  the  body  with  normal  cows^ 
urine  and  blood  this  property  of  non-coagulation  has  not  run 
as  high  as  w^ould  be  indicated  from  samples  of  red  water  urine. 
In  a number  of  experiments,  where  normal  fresh  cow  blood 
was  mixed  with  normal  urine,  clotting  has  always  taken  place 
in  dilutions  of  over  five  per  cent  blood.  This  property  of  clot- 
ting probably  depends  upon  the  amount  and  variety  of  salts 
in  the  urine,  the  state  of  anemia  of  the  subject  and  probably 
to  some  extent  upon  the  rapidity  of  the  outflow  of  blood. 

A cow  affected  with  red  water  and  in  the  last  stages  of  tha 
disease,  in  which  the  corpuscular  count  would  be  very  low, 
would  probably  have  more  fluid  blood  in  the  urine  than  a cow 
that  had  recently  contracted  the  disease.  On  the  other  hand, 
a recent  case  of  hematuria  might  pass  clots  of  blood;  but  this 


Investi^tions  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


17 


would  not  necessarily  mean  that  the  case  was  an  exceptionally 
severe  one.  Many  cases  have  been  known  to  pass  clotted 
blood  in  the  urine,  apparently  recover  and  live  for  months  or 
even  years  after  the  attack. 

After  the  first  attack,  whether  it  be  of  short  or  of  long 
duration,  the  urine  again  becomes  clear  and  remains  so  for 
varying  periods  of  time.  Even  though  urine  appears  clear  to 
the  unaided  eye,  we  have  never  failed  to  find  red  blood  cells 
in  it  by  microscopic  examination. 

This  is  the  time,  i.  e.,  when  the  urine  clears  up,  when  the 
unscrupulous  owner,  knowing  that  the  animal  will  again  show 
the  symptoms  at  a future  period,  seeks  to  dispose  of  his  ani- 
mal to  an  unsuspecting  neighbor.  Where  such  a procedure 
is  suspected  it  is  only  necessary  to  pass  a soft  rubber  catheter 
which  always  tells  the  tale. 

The  periods  of  subsidence  vary  greatly  in  different  indi- 
viduals. Some  animals  pass  bloody  urine  at  irregular  inter- 
vals of  several  days,  some  every  few  weeks  and  some  have 
an  attack  every  few  months,  the  attack  usually  lasting  several 
days. 

The  more  'common  case  is  that  the  symptoms  subside  com- 
pletely after  the  first  attack  and  do  not  again  appear  until 
just  before  or  after  the  next  parturition,  an  act  which  seems 
always  to  increase  the  severity  of  the  disease.  At  this  period 
the  attack  is  usually  more  severe,  lasting  a longer  time,  the 
hemorrhage  becomes  greater  and  other  symptoms  of  a graver 
nature  develop. 

The  patient  begins  to  emaciate,  the  milk  flow  decreases  and 
wdth  the  constantly  increasing  hemorrhage  the  cow  becomes 
quite  weak.  The  small  tuft  of  hair  at  the  inferior  commisure 
of  the  vulva  as  well  as  the  tail  and  posterior  extremities  be- 
come soiled  with  blood.  The  hemorrhage  may  be  so  great  as 
to  cause  large  clots  to  form  in  the  bladder,  thus  obstructing  the 
urethra.  In  such  a case  the  bladder  sometimes  becomes  dis- 
tended and  its  walls  paralyzed;  the  fluid  contents  gradually 
overflow  and  there  is  a dribbling  from  the  urethra. 

The  appetite  is  always  good,  in  fact  voracious;  the  animal 
eating  anything  within  reach;  at  times  the  appetite  is  much 


18  Washington  Agriculturar  Experiment  Station 

perverted  and  there  is  a tendency  to  eat  barnyard  manure 
and  especially  earth,  probably  to  satisfy  a craving  for  salts, 
which  are  lost  with  the  extravasated  blood.  The  thirst  is 
always  excessive  because  of  'the  great  loss  of  fluids  from  the 
body.  In  advanced  cases  the  visible  mucous  memibranes  are 
always  anemic. 

A rise  in  temperature  above  normal  has  never  been  noted 
in  a case  of  red  water,  but  frequently  there  has  been  a fall  of 
two  to  four  degrees  Fahrenheit  a short  time  prior  to  death. 
As  the  disease  progresses  the  periodic  attacks  become  more 
frequent  and  prolonged;  the  drain  upon  the  system  is  enor- 
mous; the  haematopoietic  organs  are  unable  to  regenerate 
blood  rapidly  enough  to  replace  that  which  has  been  lost  and 
death  ensues  as  a result. 

Blood  changes : During  the  early  stages  of  hematuria  there 
is  but  little  change  in  the  blood.  The  hemorrhage  at  this  time 
is  but  slight  and  the  blood  forming  organs  can  readily  replace 
the  corpuscles  that  have  been  lost.  As  the  disease  advances 
and  the  hemorrhage  becomes  more  pronounced,  there  is  a 
gradual  diminution  of  the  number  of  red  cells  and  usually  a 
corresponding  decrease  in  leucocytes.  The  hemoglobin  con- 
tent is  also  diminished,  but  does  not  necessarily  correspond 
with  the  decrease  in  erythrocytes. 

In  the  later  stages  of  the  disease,  when  the  hemorrhage  is 
continual  and  severe  the  erythrocytes  sometimes  diminish  to 
less  than  one  million  per  cu.  mm.  of  blood  and  the  corpuscles 
resemble  very  much  those  found  in  true  pernicious  anemia. 
Examination  of  stained  smears  reveals  the  presence  of  a few 
normoblasts,  many  stippled  cells,  microcytes,  macrocytes  and 
poikilocytes. 

In  early  cases  of  hematuria  the  percentage  of  the  varieties 
uf  leucocytes  is  quite  uniform  and  almost  normal,  as  may  be 
seen  by  Table  1.,  Group  11.,  but  in  the  later  stages  there  seems 
to  be  marked  variation  (Table  L,  Group  I.)  in  this  respect. 
No  explanation  is  offered  at  this  time  for  this  variation,  but 
no  doubt  it  has  some  bearing  on  the  development  of  the  disease. 

Urine : The  urine  always  shows  an  admixture  of  blood.  As 
previously  stated,  although  the  urine  may  appear  clear  to  the 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 
TABLE  I. 


19 


Group  1 — 


td 


Polymorphonuclear 

Leucocytes 


W 


(3- 


i-j  o 
p 


<x> 

•-t 

n 

•p 

o 

•-j 

P o 
<-►  cr* 

p' 

fD  <-»• 

•-*  >-i 

O 
n « 

P CO 

CD 

p 
o 
o P 

*P  CO 

(t>  o 

oB: 

P VJ 

<-♦■  r+- 
. Ct) 

. 03 

iclear 
;ent . . 

P 

n 

2 P* 

2 tP 

• r 

B 

B 

c 

B 

•• 

i-t-  p' 

. <i> 
cc 

p 

r ® 

* c» 

p 2 

<4-  “ 

• 0) 

• p 

• o 

• o 

B 

. ^ 

. 

CD 

• ro 

3 

3,200,000 

3,000 

50.0 

85.0 

2.0 

1.0 

9.5 

2.5 

4 

4,650,000 

4,000 

70.0 

22.0 

2.0 

2.0 

74.0 

0.0 

5 

1,920,000 

13,000 

50.0 

64.0 

1.0 

1.0 

24.0 

10.0 

6 

3,480,000 

4,000 

75.0 

41.8 

7.4 

0.0 

50.4 

0.4 

7 

1,600,000 

3,000 

30.0 

23.5 

17.5 

1.0 

46.0 

12.0 

12 

3,250,000 

4,000 

30.0 

32.5 

6.0 

3.5 

55.5 

2.5 

13  1,960,000 

Group  2 — 

6,000 

40.0 

35.0 

21.0 

4.0 

40.0 

0.0 

1 

6,580,000 

8,000 

80.0 

24.0 

17.5 

1.0 

51.0 

6.5 

8 

6,520,000 

11,000 

100.0 

22.0 

18.0 

4.0 

51.0 

5.0 

9 

6,400,000 

7,000 

100.0 

25.0 

13.0 

1.0 

60.0 

1.0 

unaided  eye,  microscopical  examination  after  sedimentation 
has  always  revealed  the  presence  of  red  cells.  The  color  of  the 
urine  then  varies  with  the  severity  of  the  hemorrhage,  and  may 
appear  clear,  slightly  tinged  with  red,  or  it  may  be  dark  red, 
resembling  pure  blood  and  even  contain  clots.  When  it  is  of 
a distinct  red  color  it  appears  opaque  and  if  allowed  to  stand 
in  a vessel  for  a few  hours  the  corpuscles  settle  to  the  bottom 
and  there  is  a distinct  stratum  of  clear  urine  above.  In  this 
way  the  condition  can  be  readily  differentiated  from  hemo- 
globinuria as  here  the  urine  is  either  a bright  red  and  trans- 
parent or  dark  brown  in  color  and  remains  the  same  when 
allowed  to  set  in  a vessel. 

When  examined  under  the  microscope  without  staining  the 
urine  in  hematuria  shows  large  numbers  of -unaltered  red  cells 
which  retain  their  shape  remarkably  well  for  a number  of  days 
if  the  urine  be  placed  in  a cool  place;  leucocytes  and  bladder 
epithelium  are  also  present.  The  urine  is  alkaline  in  reaction 
and  owing  to  the  admixture  of  blood  albumen  is  always 
present. 


20  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 
Morbid  Anatomy 

When  an  animal  dies  of  red  water  or  is  killed  in  the  last 
stages  of  the  disease  the  carcass  is  always  much  emaciated. 
The  subcutaneous  tissues  and  skeletal  muscles  are  flabby  and 
appear  pale.  The  blood  is  thin  and  watery  and  coagulation 
tardy. 

Upon  opening  the  abdominal  cavity  the  contained  viscera 
appears  pale,  resembling  very  much  that  of  an  animal  which 
has  been  bled  to  death.  In  a few  cases  there  have  been  ob- 
served a few  slight  hemorrhages  on  the  peritoneum  covering 
the  spleen  and  intestinal  walls.  The  liver  and  kidneys  usually 
appear  paler  than  normal,  but  are  not  enlarged.  These  show, 
upon  microscopic  examination,  cloudy  swelling  of  their  cells, 
which  sometimes  has  advanced  to  fatty  degeneration.  ■ In  two 
cases  there  have  been  noted  a chronic  interstitial  hepatitis,  the 
result  of  fluke  infestation.  In  one  case  there  was  also  noted 
an  anemic  infarct  of  one  kidney  which  was  of  unknown  origin. 
The  ureters  in  every  case  have  been  found  free  of  pathological 
lesions.  The  spleen  is  usually  normal  in  size  and  in  micro- 
scopic appearance;  in  one  case  a marked  hemosiderin  pig- 
mentation was  found. 

The  lymphatic  glands  both  somatic  and  visceral  have 
always  been  found  normal.  The  entire  digestive  tract  is  nor- 
mal as  far  as  inflammatory  or  other  primary  lesions  are  con- 
cerned. The  heart  and  lungs  are  usually  normal  but  slight 
hemorrhages  have  been  encountered  in  two  cases  in  the  pleural 
covering  of  the  lungs  and  on  the  pericardium.  In  short,  pri- 
mary lesions  involving  any  organ  with  the  exception  of  the 
bladder  are  conspicuous  by  their  absence.  The  bladder  is  the 
chief  and  only  seat  of  red  water  lesions  thus  far  encountered 
in  the  autopsy  of  twelve  cases. 

If  the  case  be  one  of  purely  red  water  without  eoniplica- 
tions,  the  external  surface  of  the  bladder  is  normal  but  appears 
dark  in  color  on  account  of  its  bloody  contents.  It  may  be  very 
much  distended,  especially  so  if  it  contains  clots  which  have 
l>een  sufficiently  large  to  obstruct  the  urethra,  and  be  full  of 
bloody  urine.  If  the  contents  are  fluid  and  free  of  clots  the 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


21 


viscus  is  only  moderately  distended.  Upon  opening  the  blad- 
der one  finds  distributed  over  various  parts  of  the  mucous 
membrane  blood  red  areas  varying  in  size  from  mere  pin  points 
to  the  diameter  of  several  inches.  There  is  a great  variation 
in  the  number  and  size  of  these  areas  in  different  cases  of 
hematuria.  The  most  dependent  portion  of  the  bladder  seems 
to  be  the  first  to  show  these  lesions,  but  later  all  portions  of 
the  mucosa  may  become  involved.  In  some  cases  most  of  the 
lesions  are  pedunculated,  being  attached  by  a small  fibrous 
tissue  neck  and  freely  movable.  In  other  cases  the  lesions  are 
mostly  sessile  and  small,  but  in  most  cases  both  varieties  of 
lesions  are  to  be  found.  In  some  cases  there  are  also  noted  a 
few  elevated  areas  which  are  pale  and  quite  firm  (Fig.  V.,  a). 
The  mucous  membrane  of  the  bladder  between  the  lesions  is 
always  much  thickened,  showing  in  places  evidences  of  healing 
by  scar  formation.  These  cicatrices  probably  account  for  the 
surprisingly  small  number  of  lesions  in  some  of  the  long  stand- 
ing cases  of  red  water. 

It  is  impossible  to  determine  the  duration  of  the  disease  by 
the  size  and  character  of  the  bladder  lesions.  The  hemorrhage 
from  the  bladder  is  sometimes  just  as  severe  from  small  lesions 
as  it  is  from  large  ones  in  advanced  cases.  In  figures  IV.  and  V. 
the  variation  in  the  size  and  shape  of  the  lesions  is  well  illus- 
trated ; each  of  the  animals  from  which  these  bladders  were 
taken  had  been  affected  about  fifteen  months  and  hemorrhage 
was  equally  severe  in  both  cases. 

Microscopic  examination  of  the  bladder  wall  after  section- 
ing shows  the  submucosa  to  be  very  much  thickened  by  fibrous 
tissue  and  containing  many  round  cells.  The  epithelial  cells  of 
the  mucosa  are  either  much  altered  or  exfoliated  and  replaced 
by  fibrous  tissue.  The  small  red  sessile  lesions  are  composed 
of  dilated  blood  vessels,  mostly  veins,  filled  with  blood  and 
surrounded  by  fibrous  tissue. 

The  epithelium  covering  these  is  usually  increased  in  thick- 
ness or  it  may  be  entirely  eroded,  in  which  case  hemorrhage 
takes  place  from  them.  The  larger  red  pedunculated  lesions 
are  composed  of  a series  of  venous  sinuses  of  varying  size  and 
separated  by  fibrous  connective  tissue  trabeculae  (Figs.  YIII. 


22  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


and  XI.).  They  resemble  very  much  normal  erectile  tissue  or 
again  they  may  be  likened  to  the  blood  spaces  seen  in  cavernous 
hemangiomas.  These  sinuses  are  usually  lined  by  a single 
layer  of  flat  epithelial  cells.  In  one  case,  however  (Figs.  VIII. 
and  IX.),  these  epithelial  cells  assumed  the  appearance  of  pro- 
tozoa and  were  at  first  thought  to  be  such;  they  were  very 
large,  some  round  and  others  oval,  the  nucleus  stained  deeply 
and  presented  numerous  deep  staining  granules ; some  of  these 
cells  were  apparently  loosened  from  the  basement  membrane 
and  were  free  in  the  sinus.  The  sinuses  are  filled  with  blood, 
except  where  they  have  been  emptied  of  their  contents  by 
manipulation  after  death.  The  trabeculae  between  the  sinuses 
are  variable  in  size;  those  near  the  surface  of  the  lesion  are 
usually  quite  thin,  while  in  the  deeper  portions  they  are  com- 
paratively thick.  They  are  made  up  of  white  fibrous  connect- 
ive tissues  and  contain  many  connective  tissue  cells,  fibroblasts 
and  leucocytes.  A few  small  arteries  may  be  found  embedded 
in  these  trabeculae.  In  some  of  the  lesions  one  may  also  find 
a few  foci  of  leucocytes  within  the  trabeculae  (Fig.  X.) ; these 
are  probably  the  result  of  a secondary  infection  by  some  pyo- 
genic organisms.  In  some  cases  we  find  that  the  venous  sinuses 
are  comparatively  small,  assuming  the  shape  of  much  dilated 
veins  and  surrounded  by  a very  thick  fibrous  wall  (Fig.  XII.). 

The  epithelium  covering  these  lesions  is  also  quite  variable ; 
sometimes  it  is  seen  to  retain  its  transtional*  type,  at  others  it 
seems  much  altered  and  one  can  always  find  areas  where  the 
epithelium  has  been  eroded.  The  bleeding  in  hematuria  no 
doubt  takes  place  from  these  eroded  areas. 

The  pale  lesions  to  which  I have  already  alluded  are  not 
as  much  in  evidence  as  those  of  the  venous  type.  They  are 
usually  quite  small,  about  an  eighth  of  an  inch  in  diameter  and 
are  entirely  absent  in  many  cases.  Microscopically  they  pre- 
sent entirely  different  features.  The  lesion  is  made  up  largely 
of  fibrous  tissue  in  which  are  embedded  a number  of  small 
arteries  (Fig.  XIII.).  These  arteries  are  always  empty  and  are 
made  up  of  an  inner  lining  of  flat  epithelial  cells  surrounded 
by  a comparatively  heavy  wall  of  circularly  arranged  smooth 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


23 


muscle  cells.  In  parts  of  the  lesion  there  may  also  be  foimd  a 
few  venous  sinuses,  but  these  are  in  the  minority. 

In  typical  cases  of  hematuria  we  may  then,  according  to 
the  foregoing,  consider  two  kinds  of  bladder  lesions : first,  the 
red  hemorrhagic  or  venous  lesions  which  are  of  varying  size 
and  may  be  either  sessile  or  pedunculated;  and,  second,  the 
small,  pale  arterial  lesions,  which  are  always  few  in  number 
and  in  some  cases  absent. 

Not  all  cases  of  red  water,  however,  are  uncomplicated  and 
other  lesions  might  be  associated  with  those  commonly  found. 
Organisms  of  various  kinds  readily  gain  access  to  the  urinary 
organs,  and  it  is  obvious  that  such  lesions  as  are  found  in 
hematuria  are  favorable  fields  for  their  development. 

In  one  case  under  observation  the  bladder  (Fig.  VII.)  was 
quite  badly  infected  and  there  were  two  areas  of  granulating 
tissue  about  two  inches  in  diameter  on  the  mucous  membrane. 
The  inflammatory  process  extended  through  the  wall  of  the 
bladder  and  a clot  of  blood  about  the  size  of  a hen’s  egg  was 
firmly  adhered  to  its  external  surface.  The  contents  of  the 
bladder  also  contained  clots,  some  of  which  were  adhered  to 
the  mucous  membrane  at  the  granulating  areas. 

In  another  case  we  found  associated  with  the  red  water 
lesions  a papillomatous  new  growth  covering  an  area  about  two' 
inches  in  diameter  in  the  fundus  portion  of  the  bladder.  As 
we  sometimes  find  papillomas  in  the  bladder  there  is  no  doubt 
but  what  the  two  conditions  developed  independently  and 
had  nothing  in  common,  their  development  at  one  and  the 
same  time  being  simply  a coincidence. 

Treatment 

Inasmuch  as  hematuria  occurs  mostly  in  the  coastal  region 
of  Washington,  and  the  Experiment  Station  is  located  in  the 
eastern  part  of  the  State  it  has  been  rather  difficult  to  treat 
affected  animals  with  any  degree  of  satisfaction.  In  order 
to  study  the  disease  it  has  been  necessary  to  bring  red  water 
cows  to  the  Station  and  a few  of  these  have  been  treated  by 
various  methods.  In  the  main,  treatment  has  been  carried 
out  through  correspondence  with  owners  of  affected  cows. 


24  Washington  AgTicultural  Experiment  Station 

but  this  has  been  rather  unsatisfactory.  In  such  cases  the 
owner  usually  expects  immediate  results  from  his  treatment 
and  failing  in  this  respect  resorts  to  any  and  all  remedies 
recommended. 

Any  form  of  treatment  in  this  disease,  at  best,  has  thus 
far  been  found  unsatisfactory.  Many  different  drugs  have 
been  used  and  a great  many  seem  to  cause  temporary  relief, 
i.  e.,  there  is,  following  their  use,  a temporary  subsidence  of 
the  discharge  of  bloody  urine.  This,  however,  can  not  always 
be  attributed  to  the  drug  administered,  for  we  find  the  same 
symptom  of  subsidence  and  recurrence  of  bloody  urine  from 
day  to  day  in  animals  receiving  no  treatment  whatsoever. 

Calcium  chloride  has  been  given  by  some  authorities  a very 
prominent  place  in  medicine  as  an  internal  hemostatic,  This 
property  is  said  to  be  due  to  the  power  the  drug  possesses 
of  increasing  the  coagubility  of  the  blood.  If  this  be  correct, 
it  would  undoubtedly  be  indicated  in  such  'diseases  as  hema- 
turia. That  the  discharge  of  blood  temporarily  ceases  in  some 
cases  of  red  water  after  administering  calcium  chloride  is 
readily  demonstrated.  On  the  other  hand,  increased  coagu- 
bility of  the  blood  was  not  evident  after  administering  the 
drug  in  cases  where  we  have  had  opportunity  to  test  this 
property.  The  time  required  for  the  coagulation  of  blood  of 
red  water  cows,  according  to  our  experiments,  varies  from 
six  to  forty  minutes.  In  three  eases  experiments  have  been 
conducted  in  which  the  coagubility  of  the  blood  was  tested 
before  and  after  administering  calcium  chloride.  The  Biffi- 
Brooks  coagulometer  was  used  for  these  tests. 

The  blood  in  the  first  case  was  tested  before  treatment 
and  required  six  minutes^  time  for  coagulation.  'The  cow 
was  then  given  fifteen  grams  of  calcium  chloride  daily  for 
three  days;  after  that  the  dose  was  increased  to  thirty  grams 
daily  and  the  treatment  continued  for  a period  of  three  weeks. 
The  blood  was  tested  daily  for  the  first  seven  days  of  treat- 
ment, but  showed  no  increase  in  coagubility.  At  the  end  of 
the  three  weeks  ^ treatment  it  was  again  tested,  but  still  'the 
coagulation  point  remained  the  same.  Clinically  the  animhl 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


25 


remained  about  the  same  throughout  the  treatment  and  there 
was  no  cessation  of  bloodj^-  urine. 

Two  other  cases  were  treated  the  same  as  the  preceding 
one  with  like  results  as  regards  the  coagubility  of  the  blood. 
In  one  of  these  the  blood  required  eight  minutes  for  coagu- 
lation and  in  the  other  fourteen  minutes.  The  discharge  of 
bloody  urine  ceased  in  one  case  during  the  fourth  day  of 
treatment,  but  reappeared  on  the  eighth  day.  In  the  other 
case  bloody  urine  ceased  on  the  fifteenth  day  of  treatment 
and  did  not  reappear  until  five  da3's  after  the  treatment  was 
discontinued. 

Calcium  chloride  and  also  the  lactate  in  one  ounce  doses 
daih"  have  been  recommended  to  many  owners  of  red  water 
cows,  but  results  have  varied  greatly.  Some  have  obtained 
very  gratifying  results,  claiming  that  the  urine  cleared  up 
after  administering  two  or  three  doses,  while  others  have  used 
the  drugs  for  periods  of  two  weeks  or  more  with  no  results 
whatever. 

Other  drugs  which  seem  to  arrest  the  cystic  hemorrhage 
temporarily  are : Lead  acetate  given  in  four-gram  doses 
alternately  with  solution  of  ferric  chloride  four  grams  once 
daily;  Epsom  salts  in  laxative  doses;  potassium  iodide,  potas- 
sium chlorate,  iodine  and  quinine.  Many  others  of  course 
have  been  used  by  veterinarians  and  others  in  the  field,  but 
no  satisfactory  results  have  been  obtained. 

The  injection  of  astringent  lotions  into  the  bladder  seems 
to  be  of  little  value.  When  this  method  of  treatment  is  used 
great  care  must  be  exercised,  as  any  slight  irritation  of  the 
vascular  lesions  in  the  bladder  of  red  water  animals  will 
erode  their  covering,  which  is  very  thin,  and  cause  an  out- 
pouring of  blood.  In  cases  where  the  urine  has  become  per- 
fectly clear  passing  of  a soft  rubber  catheter  into  the  bladder 
will  invariabl}^  produce  a hemorrhage. 

We  have  tried  injections  of  adrenalin,  normal  salt,  weak 
alum,  and  tannic  acid  solutions  into  the  bladder^  but  results 
have  been  unsatisfactory. 


26  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

Disposition  of  Affected  Animals 

From  what  has  been  said  in  the  foregoing  pages  it  is  ob- 
vious that  although  red  water  is  not  a rapidly  fatal  disease, 
it  is  one  that  is  most  certain  to  cause  a depreciation  in  value 
and  eventuall}^  death  of  an  animal  that  has  contracted  it. 
For  this  reason  and  for  the  further  reason  that  it  is  apparently 
an  incurable  malady  at  the  present  time,  it  is  suggested  that 
the  affected  animals  be  disposed  of  early. 

The  disease  seems  to  be  essentially  a local  one,  confined  to 
the  bladder,  and  so  long  as  an  affected  cow  is  in  good  physical 
condition  the  meat  may  be  considered  perfectly  wholesome. 
Hence,  the  most  profitable  procedure  under  the  present  cir- 
cumstances would  be  to  fatten  all  affected  cows  and  dispose 
of  them  for  beef.  It  is  also  important  not  to  breed  a cow 
after  she  has  once  contracted  the  disease  as  the  act  of  par- 
turition always  seems  to  aggravate  the  symptoms. 

In  concluding,  the  author  wishes  to  express  his  apprecia- 
tion to  Dr.  S.  B.  Nelson  for  valuable  suggestions  offered  dur- 
ing the  investigation  of  red  water.  Thanks  are  also  due 
Doctors  W.  E.  Ralston  and  E.  E.  Wegner  of  the  Veterinary 
Department  for  help  in  various  ways.  Others  who  have  ren- 
dered valuable  assistance,  either  by  locating  red  water  cows 
or  forwarding  specimens  to  the  laboratory,  are  Dr.  Willis  Wil- 
son of  Dayton,  Doctors  Trippeer  and  Baddeley  of  Walla 
Walla,  Dr.  Carl  Cozier  of  Bellingham,  Dr.  E.  N.  Hutchinson 
of  Blaine,  Dr.  R.  A.  Button  of  Tacoma  and  Mr.  G.  W.  Kincaid 
of  Monroe.  Many  stockmen  to  whom  we  feel  duly  indebted 
have  also  rendered  material  help  by  contributing  red  water 
cows  to  the  Station  for  experimental  purposes. 


SUMMARY 

I.  — Red  water  is  a specific  disease . of  cattle  and  is  quite 
common  in  the  western  part  of  Washington. 

II.  — It  is  characterized  clinically  by  the  constant  or  peri- 
odic discharge  of  bloody  urine  and  by  its  chronic  course;  and 


Investigations  of  Bovine  Red  Water 


27 


pathologically  by  the  characteristic  vascular  lesions  which 
occur  on  the  bladder  mucosa. 

III.  — The  cause  of  the  disease  is  yet  to  be  discovered. 

IV.  — Blood  of  sick  cows  seems  to  be  innocuous  to  healthy 
ones. 

V.  — The  disease  has  been  apparently  transmitted  from  a 
sick  to  a healthy  cow  by  inoculation  of  the  latter  with  the 
bladder  lesions  of  the  former. 

VI.  — Although  some  drugs  seem  to  render  temporary 
relief,  treatment  as  a whole  has  been  very  unsatisfactory, 

VII.  — Permanent  recoveries  from  red  water  are  doubtful; 
a cow  once  affected  with  the  disease  nearly  always  eventually 
succumbs  to  it. 


Fig.  I. 


Red  water  cow  No.  6. 
eight  hours  before  death. 


A typical  case  of  red  water  about  forty- 
Case  of  about  fifteen  months  standing. 


Pig.  IT. 

Red  water  cow  No.  9.  This  cow,  although  apparently  healthy, 
has  been  affected  with  red  water  for  ffve  years. 


Fig.  Ill 

Inverted  bladder  of  red  water  cow  No.  12.  Case  of  about  eighteen  months 
standing. 


Fig.  IV 


Inverted  bladder  from  red  water  cow  No.  3.  Although  the  lesions  in  this 
case  appear  insignificant,  most  of  them  being  very  small,  death  resulted  from 
excessive  loss  of  blood.  Case  of  about  fifteen  months  standing. 


Fig.  VII 

Inverted  bladder  of  a red  water  cow  showing  marked  development  of  granulating 
tissue  and  severe  hemorrhage,  probably  due  to  a secondary  infection,  (a)  blood  clot 
firmly  adherent  to  the  mucosa;  (b)  granulating  tissue  and'  typical  red  water  lesions, 
mostly  the  former.  The  infiammatory  disturbance  in  this  case  was  so  severe  that  the 
external  surface  of  the  bladder  was  involved  and  several  clots  of  blood  were  adhered  to  it. 


Inverted  bladder  of  red  water  cow  No.  6.  Note  the  number  and  size  of  the  lesions 
some  of  which  are  pedunculated.  All  are  blood  red  in  color  except  the  one  at  (a) 
which  is  pale.  At  (b)  is  the  normal  vaginal  mucous  membrane. 


Fig.  V 


Inverted  bladder  of  cow'  showing  a case  of  artificially  induced  red  water  by  inocu- 
lation wdth  lesions  obtained  from  the  bladder  shown  in  Fig.  IV. 


Pig.  VIII. 


Microphotograph  of  a red  lesion  taken  from  the  bladder  shown 
in  Fig.  V.  a — Blood  in  venous  sinuses;  b — empty  venous  sinuses; 
note  the  large  cells  (presumably  epithelial),  which  form  the  inner 
lining;  c — small  connective  tissue  trabeculae  near  surface  of  lesion; 
d — large  connective  tissue  trabeculae  containing  fibroblasts,  wan- 
dering connective  tissue  cells,  leucocytes,  etc.;  e — surface  of  lesion 
composed  of  much  altered  bladder  epithelium.  X — 90. 


Fig.  IX. 

Same  as  Fig.  VIII.,  but  more  highly  magnified,  a — Large  cells 
(probably  epithelial)  within  a venous  sinus;  these  cells,  when  first 
seen,  were  thought  to  be  protozoa.  Similar  cells  have  not  been  seen 
in  other  like  cases;  b — red  blood  corpuscles;  c — connective  tissue 
surrounding  the  blood  sinuses.  X — 500. 


Fig.  X. 

Another  field  from  the  same  preparation  as  Fig.  VIII.,  showing 
a focus  of  leucocytes  at  “a”;  this  is  probably  the  result  of  a second- 
ary infection.  At  “b”  is  shown  the  altered  bladder  epithelium  which 
is  exfoliated  at  “c.”  X — 90. 


Fig.  XI. 

Microphotograph  of  a lesion  taken  from  the  bladder  illustrated 
in  Fig.  TIT.:  a — venous  sinuses  of  various  shapes  and  sizes  filled 
with  blood:  note  the  abseno.e  of  the  large  cells  found  lining  the 
sinuses  in  Fig.  IX.;  b — fibrous  connective  tissue  trabeculae; 
c — surface  of  lesion  lined  by  epithelium  which  seems  to  retain  its 
transitional  type.  X — 90. 


Fig.  XII. 

Microphotograph  of  a small  red  lesion  from  the  bladder  illus- 
trated in  Fig.  IV.:  a- — venous  sinuses  filled  with  blood;  note  their 
small  size  when  compared  with  those  seen  in  Figures  VIII.  and  XI. 
Note  also  at  “b”  the  relatively  large  amount  of  connective  tiss’ie 
between  the  sinuses.  X. — 90. 


Fig.  XTII. 


Microphotograph  of  a small  pale  lesion  from  the  bladder  illus- 
trated in  Pig.  IV.;  a — newly  formed  arteries;  b — connective  tissue. 
This  illustrates  well  the  character  of  the  pale  lesions  which  are 
made  up  of  both  arteries  and  venous  sinuses  but  in  which  the 
former  predominates.  X — 90. 


Fig:.  XIV. 

Microphotograph  of  a lesion  from  the  bladder  shown  in  Fig. 
VI.:  a — venous  sinuses  filled  with  blood:  b — focus  of  leucocytes, 
probably  a secondary  infection;  c — fibrous  connective  tissue; 
d — surface  of  lesion  from  which  the  epithelium  has  exfoliated. 

X— 90. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTUR  AL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PUI.LMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  BOTANY 


Plants  Used  for  Food  by  Sheep 
on  the  Mica  Mountain 
Summer  Range 

By  R.  KENT  BEATTIE 


BULLETIN  No.  113 
December,  1913 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director 


- BOARD  OF  CONTROL. 


D.  S.  TROY,  President Chimacum 

JAS.  C CUNNINGHAM,  Vice-PresicTent......;: Spokane 

E.  A.  BRYAN,  Sec’y-  Ex-Officio.. ..President  of  the  College,  Pullman 

R.  C McCROSKEY Garfield 

PETER  McGREGOR  Spokane 

LEE  A.  JOHNSON Sunnyside 


STATION  STAFF. 


IRA  D.  CARDIFF,  Ph.  D 

ELTON  FULMER,  M.  A 

S.  B.  NELSON,  D.  V.  M 

O.  L.  WALLER, 'Ph:  M .: 

A.  L.  MELANDER,  M.  S 

O.  M.  MORRIS,  B.  S....^..: 

GEO.  M.  SEVERANCE,  B.  S... 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S ‘. 

A.  B.  NYSTROM,  M.  S ^ 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S 

W.  T.  SHAW,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S 

R.  C.  ASHBY,  B.  S 

J.  G.  HALL,  M.  A 

E.  G.  SHAFER,  M.  S 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  D.  V.  S 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A 

M.  A.  YOTHERS,  B.  S 

HENRY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S 

C.  F.  MONROE,  B.  S.  A 

W.  J.  YOUNG,  B.  S 

C.  B.  SPRAGUE,  B.  S 

D.  C.  GEORGE,  B.  S 

c.  K.  McWilliams,  m.  a 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN 

ELLA  W.  BROCK 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Veterinarian 

. . : i I rVigatioh  Engineer 

Entomologist 

:. ..... ^Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

‘ Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Agronomist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Entomologist 

... ..........Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Assistant  Cerealist 

Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  in  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

j\ssistant  Chemist 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

: . . . . .7. . . .Executive  Clerk 


Plants  Used  for  Food  by  Sheep 
on  the  Mica  Mountain 
Summer  Range. 


BY  R.  KENT  BEATTIE,  A.  M. 

Professor  of  Botany  and  Head  of  the  Department  of  Botany,  S.  C.^ 


The  plant  growth  of  a forest  region  is  not  confined  to  trees  which 
are  valuable  for  wood  products  and  lumber.  Associated  with  them 
are  other  smaller  trees  and  many  shrubs  and  herbs.  All  these  together 
form  a secondary  but  at  the  same  time  a very  important  source  of  the 
usefulness  of  the  forest — the  supplying  of  food  plants  for  grazing  animals. 

An  economical  management  of  the  forest  involves  a wise  and  eco- 
nomical use  of  this  forest  food.  As  much  use  of  it  must  be  made  as 
is  consistent  with  the  main  object  of  the  forest,  the  production  of  wood 
products  and  lumber,  and  with  the  preservation  of  a continued  supply  of 
grazing  for  future  years. 

The  state  of  Washington  contains  seven  well  marked  vegetative 
regions:  (1)  The  sagebrush  plains  of  central  Washington,  (2)  the 

bunch-grass  hills  of  the  Palouse  country,  (3)  the  moist  west  side  fir 
forests,  (4)  the  yellow  pine  forests  of  the  Blue  mountains,  Stevens,  and 
Ferry  counties  and  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Cascade  mountains,  (5)  the 
white  pine  and  white  fir  forests  of  the  Cascade  and  Blue  mountains,  (6) 
the  subalpine  fir  and  black  hemlock  forests  of  the  higher  Cascades  and 
Olympics,  and  (7)  the  high  arctic  vegetation  above  timber  line  in  the 
Cascades  and  Olympics.  All  of  these  regions  enter  more  or  less  into 
cattle,  sheep,  and  horse  raising.  Only  the  sage-brush  plains,  the  bunch- 
grass  hills,  and  the  yellow  pine  and  white  pine  forests  enter  into  this 
discussion. 

The  sage-brush  plains  and  their  adjacent  river  valleys  lie  below 
1200  feet  elevation  and  have  a rainfall  of  5.7  to  13  inches  per  year. 
About  three-fourths  of  this  rain  falls  during  the  months  from  November 
to  May,  while  July,  August,  and  September  are  almost  rainless.  The 
winters  are  mild.  The  temperature  in  winter  averages  but  little  below 
freezing  and  seriously  cold  weather  comes  but  seldom.  These  condi- 

*Resigned  September  15,  1912. 


4 Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

tions  provide  a large  acreage  of  land  unsuited  to  ordinary  agriculture, 
except  in  the  small  area  where  irrigation  water  is  available,  but  they 
furnish  a large  amount  of  valuable  winter  forage  easily  supplemented  by 
alfalfa  hay  from  the  nearby  irrigated  lands.  The  dry  summers,  how- 
ever, make  it  impossible  to  carry  any  large  amount  of  stock  on  this 
range  throughout  the  year.  The  effective  use,  therefore,  of  this  vast 
amount  of  the  raw  material  out  of  which  human  food  and  clothing  are 
made  by  range  animals  is  conditioned  on  the  use  of  other  summer  range 
lands  during  the  dry  and  barren  period  from  June  1 to  November  1 . 

Fortunately  for  the  producers  and  consumers  of  stock  in  the  state, 
the  sage-brush  region  is  surrounded  on  all  sides  by  other  higher,  cooler, 
and  moister  regions  available  for  summer  range.  The  bunch-grass  hills 
which  immediately  surround  the  sage-brush  are  almost  entirely  settled  up 
and  fenced  and  are  given  over  to  wheat  raising  and  general  farming. 
They  are  not  available  for  grazing  till  when  the  grain  has  been  threshed 
and  the  wheat  fields  have  become  stubble  fields.  But  back  of  and 
above  these  in  the  foothills  and  in  the  mountains  lie  the  yellow  and  the 
white  pine  forests.  Parts  of  these  forests  are  cleared  and  other  parts 
will  in  the  future  be  cleared  and  converted  into  agricultural  land,  but 
large  areas  are  valuable  only  for  forest  purposes.  They  are  now 
mostly  under  the  control  of  the  nation,  the  state  or  large  lumber  in- 
terests and  are  available  for  summer  range. 

The  preservation  of  these  forests  and  the  proper  use  of  them  as 
summer  range  demands  intelligent  management.  Intelligent  manage- 
ment can  only  be  based  on  knowledge.  There  is  at  the  present  time  in 
this,  as  well  as  in  every  other  branch  of  science,  too  great  a tendency  to 
draw  general  conclusions  on  but  few  local  data.  Because  the  sheep 
tramp  out  the  grass  in  one  region  does  not  signify  that  they  will  in 
another.  Because  one  plant  or  one  sort  of  plant  is  the  chief  food  plant 
in  one  region  does  not  prove  that  it  is  in  another.  It  is  therefore  very 
desirable  that  range  data  be  secured  in  many  different  and  varied  regions. 

To  gather  data  which  might  represent  the  conditions  in  one  part 
of  this  vast  northwestern  summer  range,  the  writer  spent  the  month  of 
August,  1911,  in  a study  of  the  sheep  food  plants  on  the  summer  range 
in  the  Mica  Mountain  region  of  Latah  county,  Idaho.  Although  this 
region  lies  outside  the  state  of  Washington,  it  is  an  easily  accessible  ex- 
tension of  the  Washington  vegetative  regions  and  is  much  used  by  Wash- 
ington sheep  from  the  winter  ranges  in  southwestern  Whitman  and 
adjacent  counties.  Again  in  the  latter  part  of  July,  1912,  a second 
visit  was  made  to  the  region  before  the  sheep  reached  it  to  check  up  the 
effect  of  the  previous  year’s  grazing.  The  work  resolved  itself  into  a 
study  of  the  food  habits,  the  range  management,  and  the  effect  on  the 
range  of  two  well-handled  bands  of  sheep  grazed  on  a leased  range 
which  was  well  supplied  with  food. 

I am  very  greatly  indebted  to  McGregor  Brothers  of  Hoop^er, 
Washington,  whose  sheep  were  the  subject  of  this  investigation,  and  to 


5 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

their  employees  for  the  numerous  courtesies  which  made  the  work  pleas- 
ant and  indeed  possible.  I am  also  indebted  to  the  Potlatch  Lumber 
Company  of  Potlatch,  Idaho,  for  information  as  to  their  forest  lands 
leased  for  grazing  purposes. 

MANAGEMENT  OF  THE  SHEEP. 

In  the  year  1911,  McGregor  Brothers  raised  about  12,000  sheep. 
They  were  wintered  on  the  McGregor  ranch  on  the  breaks  of  Snake 
river,  just  east  of  the  Palouse  river,  near  Hooper,  Whitman  county, 
Washington.  The  lambing  season  began  about  March  20  and  con- 
tinued for  six  weeks.  Shearing  was  begun  about  April  25.  The  sheep 
were  started  for  the  summer  range  as  soon  as  possible  after  the  shearing 
season.  Half  of  them  were  sent  north  of  Spokane,  Washington,  into 
the  Huckleberry  Range  of  mountains  lying  between  the  Columbia  and 
the  Colville  valleys.  The  other  six  thousand,  with  which  we  are  con- 
cerned, in  two  equal  bands,  started  on  June  1 for  the  Idaho  range. 
They  were  seven  days  on  the  road. 

McGregor  Brothers  had  leased  the  grazing  privileges  from  the 
Potlatch  Lumber  Company  on  all  its  forest  land  lying  between  the  head- 
waters of  Hatter  creek  (a  tributary  of  the  North  Palouse  river,  which 
rises  in  the  Thatuna  hills  and  empties  into  the  Palouse  near  Princeton, 
Idaho)  and  the  Shay  meadows,  which  lie  about  four  miles  west  of 
Bovill,  Idaho,  on  a small  tributary  of  the  Potlatch  river.  The  region 
leased  was  two  miles  wide  and  about  twenty-two  miles  Ion". 
The  two  drainage  basins,  the  Palouse  and  the  Potlatch,  are  separated 
somewhat  east  of  the  middle  of  this  strip  by  the  Mica  m^ountains,  a 
small  range  of  mountains  which  rise  to  an  altitude  of  about  4500  feet. 
The  grazing  region  crossed  over  a large  section  of  this  ridge  and  these 
mountains  furnished  one  of  the  most  valuable  sources  of  food  supply. 
Part  of  the  strip  of  land  has  been  logged;  some  of  it  is  now  being  cut; 
but  much  of  it  is  still  in  virgin  forest.  Here  and  there  arc  a few  hom.e- 
steads  and  developed  farm.s  belonging  to  individual  owners  and  cleared 
and  developed  by  them,  but  these  interfered  but  little  with  the  "razing 
of  the  tract.  The  same  region  has  been  grazed  by  the  McGregor  Broth- 
ers’ sheep  for  a number  of  years  in  the  past  but  had  been  ungrazed  for 
a year  or  two  about  1 908  or  1 909.  It  is  bisected  for  nearly  its  whole 
length  by  public  and  private  roads  which  follow  more  or  less  closelv  the 
township  line.  It  is  made  easily  accessible  by  the  Washington,  Idaho  & 
Montana  Railroad,  a fully  equipped  railroad  about  fifty  m.iles  long,  con- 
necting the  Palouse  line  of  the  Northern  Pacific  at  Palouse  Washington, 
with  the  Elk  River  line  of  the  Chicago,  Milwaukee  & Pu"et  Sound 
Railway  at  Bovill,  Idaho,  carrying  legular  passenger  and  freight  traffic 
as  well  as  being  used  for  the  hauling  of  logs  to  one  of  the  largest  saw- 
mills in  the  United  States  at  Potlatch,  Idaho. 

The  sheep  reached  the  summer  range  at  the  west  end  and  moved 
slowly  eastward  throughout  the  summer,  reaching  the  Shay  meadows  at 


6 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

the  eastern  end  about  October  1 . Here  they  were  finally  counted  and 
sorted  in  the  permanent  corrals  kept  at  this  place  for  that  purpose.  In 
three  days  they  were  driven  back  to  the  western  end  of  the  leased  land, 
feeding  on  selected  grazing  grounds  which  had  been  saved  during  the 
eastward  trip.  They  were  then  moved  into  the  wheat  stubble  fields  north 
and  west  of  Potlatch,  Idaho,  through  which  they  gradually  moved  south- 
westward  during  the  month  of  October  and  the  first  half  of  November. 
They  then  returned  to  their  winter  range  near  Hooper,  Washington. 

On  August  7,  when  the  writer  began  this  study,  one  band  of  about 
3000  sheep  had  reached  the  Vassar  meadows,  which  lie  in  sections  one 
and  two  of  township  40  north,  range  2,  west  of  the  Boise  meridian,  and 
were  feeding  in  the  white  pine  region.  The  other  band  of  about  the 
same  size  was  on  the  Mica  mountains  back  of  Lundsford’s  meadow  in 
section  thirty-three  of  township  41  north,  range  2,  west.  They  were 
grazing  in  the  yellow  pine  region.  During  practically  the  whole  month 
of  August,  while  the  sheep  were  under  observation,  the  two  bands  re- 
tained this  relative  position,  one  south  of  the  middle  line  of  the  grazing 
region  moving  eastward  through  the  white  pine,  the  other  north  of  the 
middle  line  moving  eastward  through  the  yellow  pine.  The  Horse 
Camp,  so-called,  or  headquarters  camp  of  the  outfit  was  on  the  Windus 
meadow,  in  section  one  of  township  40,  convenient  to  both  bands. 

With  the  two  bands  of  sheep  were  four  men,  a boss,  a helper  and 
two  herders.  The  herders  camped  with  the  sheep.  The  boss  and  the 
helper  lived  at  the  horse  camxp,  moved  the  herders’  camps  when  neces- 
sary, purchased  and  hauled  supplies,  hauled  drinking  water  for  the  camp 
and  salt  for  the  sheep,  looked  up  stubble  field  range  for  the  autumn  feed- 
ingi*  repaired  the  roads,  and  in  general  looked  after  the  welfare  of  the 
sheep  and  of  the  herders  who  could  not  leave  them.  The  boss,  Mr. 
Robert  Clyde,  of  Potlatch,  Idaho,  has  lived  in  the  region  for  twenty- 
five  years,  is  thoroughly  fam.iliar  with  every  foot  of  its  intricate  geog- 
raphy, and  has  worked  for  McGregor  Brothers  for  a long  time.  The 
other  three  men  are  natives  of  Hautes-Alpes,  a province  of  eastern 
France,,  come  from  a race  of  sheepherders,  and  have  had  several  years 
of  experience  with  sheep  in  this  country.  The  McGregor  Brothers 
.prefer  and  usually  secure  French  herders,  of  whom  there  is  quite  a 
colony  in  the  vicinity  of  Walla  Walla,  Washington. 

THE  GRAZING  REGIONS  CONSIDERED. 

The  food  plants  of  the  sheep  vary  greatly  in  the  different  vegetative 
regions  under  different  climatic  conditions.  What  the  sheep  eat  de- 
pends on  what  they  have  to  eat.  The  vegetation  of  the  four  regions 
herein  considered  is  therefore  described  below. 

The  Sage-Brush  Plains  and  Valleys. 

This  region  is  used  by  the  sheepmen  only  as  winter  range.  . It  has 
been  fully  described  and  its  food  plants  discussed  in  Bulletin  60  (7)^’ 

^See  Bibliography. 


7 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

of  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  by  Mr.  J.  S.  Cotton, 
who,,  in  the  years  1901  to  1903,  investigated  the  winter  ranges  of  cen- 
tral Washington  and  the  summer  ranges  in  the  adjacent  parts  of  the 
Cascade  mountains.  The  dominant  plant  of  the  sage-brush  region  is 
naturally  the  .‘sage-brush,  Artemisia  trideniata  Nutt.,  which  is  accom- 
panied by  rabbit  brush,  Chrysothamnus  nauseosus  (Pall.)  Britt.,  and 
antelope  brush,  Kunzia  trideniata  (Pursh)  Spreng.,  and  others.  The 
region  is  hot  and  dry  in  summer  and  its  sparse  covering  of  the  more 
tender  herbs  and  grasses  wither  or  cure  into  hay  as  the  dry  season 
approaches. . 

The  Yellow  Pine  Forests. 

From  the  standpoint  of  plant  geography,  the  yellow  pine  forests 
form  the  upper  part  of  the  Arid  Transition  region  (18)  (17).  If  the 
sage-brush  region  be  taken  as  a center,  the  yellow  pine  region  is  the 
second’ concentric  zone  lying  around  it.  Between  the  two  lie  the  bunch- 
grass  prairies  of  the  lower  part  of  the  Arid  Transition  zone.  These  will 
be  considered  later.  . ; ^ 

. . In  eastern  Washington,  the  yellow  pine  forests  lie  in  general  be- 

tween altitudes  of  1800  and  3300  feet  (18,  page  50),  but  in  the 
eastern  part  of  this  region  in  Latah  county,  Idaho,  and  especially  in  the 
Mka  mountains,  the  region  of  this  investigation,  the  upward  ex- 
tension of  the  yellow  pine  is  somewhat  greater.  The  yellow  pine  as  a 
dominant  Tree  here  reaches  4500  feet,  although  the  underbrush  changes 
to.  that  more  typical  of  the  white  pine  region  at  about  4000  feet. 

The  principal  species  of  this  forest  is  the  western  yellow  pine,  Pinus 
ponder osa  Dough  This  is  an  important  timber  tree  which  in  this  region 
frequently  reaches  a diameter  of  three  feet  and  a height  of  one  hundred 
feet.  Here  the  yellow  pine  forests  cover  granitic  hills  and  mountains 
and  are  open  in  character. 

Mixed  with  the  yellow  pine  is  a considerable  amount  of  western 
larch  or  tamarack,  Larix  occidentalis  Nutt.  On  one  of  the  southwesterly 
ridges  of  the  Mica  iliountains,  in  limited  localities,  it  dominates  certain 
•parts  of  the  ridge  and  occur.®  in  almost  pure  stand.  Elsewhere  in  the 
region  it- is  scattered  or  is  occasionally  abundant  on  steep  slopes. 

^ ^ Spruce,  Picea  engelmanni  Parry,  lodgepole  pine,  Pinus  contorta 

Dough,  and  Douglas  fir,  Pseudotsuga  mucronata  Raf.,  form  secondary 
species  in  the  yellow  pine  forest.  There  is  very  little  second  growth 
timber  except  in  clearings  where  it  usually  consists  of  lodgepole  pine, 
Douglas  fir  and  white  fir,  Abies  grandis  Lindh 

. A considerable  amount  of  shrubby  growth  occurs  in  clumps  espe- 
cially just  below  the  crest  of  the  hills  where  it  sometimes  ‘ forms  dense 
thiejeets,  but  it  nowhere  presents  the  uniformly  thick  undergrowth  so 
characteristic  of  the  white  pine  forest  to  be  described  below.  The  shrubs 
of -the  yellow  pine  forest  consist  chiefly  of  buckbrush,  Ceanotbus  san~ 
.gutneus  Pursh,'  nine-bark,  Opulaster  pauciflorus  (T.  & G.)  Heller, 


8 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 


coral  berry,  S^mphoricarpos  racemosus  Michx.,  ocean  spray,  Holodiscus 
discolor  Maxim.,  wild  rose,  Rosa  pisocarpc  Gray,  and  thimble  berry, 
Rubus  parviflorus  Nutt. 

The  open  ground  is  covered  with  pine  grass,  Calamagrostis  sul^s- 
d 01  fit  Scribn.,  mixed  with  various  herbs  such  as  species  of  Lath^rus  and 
Fragaria. 

Higher  up  on  the  mountains,  above  3500  feet  altitude,  the  under- 
brush becomes  more  abundant  and  changes  in  character.  Sticky  laurel 
or  buckbrush,  Ceanothus  velutinus  Dough,  replaces  the  common  buck- 
brush, Ceanothus  sanguineus  Pursh  of  the  lower  level.  At  about  4000 
feet  a great  deal  of  huckleberry  brush,  V accinium  macroph^llum 
(Hook.)  Piper,  comes  in. 

The  \^hite  Pine  Forests. 

In  northern  Idaho,  the  western  white  pine,  Pinus  moniicola  Dough, 
is  the  dominant  tree  of  what  the  plant  geographers  call  the  Canadian 
zone.  As  represented  in  the  region  under  consideration,  this  is  a very 
sharply  limited  :\nd  easily  distinguished  zone.  Here  it  does  not  begin 
at  the  upper  edge  of  the  yellow  pine  and  run  up  mountain  sides  but  it 
covers  a wide  expanse  of  lower  country  bounded  on  the  southwest  by 
the  Mica  and  other  mountains  and  extending  east.vardly  to  the  Bitter 
Root  mountains. 

The  white  pine  region  lies  at  altitudes  varying  around  3000  feet. 
It  is  composed  of  innumerable  small  hills  separated  by  rather  steep  can- 
yons in  which  flow  small  streams.  At  intervals  the  stream  bottoms 
widen  out  into  wet  meadows.  It*  is  these  m.eadows  which,  from  the 
standpoint  of  human  geography,  form  the  key  to  the  country.  (Figs. 
1 , 3,  and  4.) 

The  Woods. 

The  white  pine  forests  cover  the  hills  and  run  down  to  the  edge 
of  each  meadow,  extending  out  into  the  meadow  just  as  far  as  the  wet- 
ness of  the  soil  will  permit.  The  western  white  pine  is  the  dominant 
tree  but  the  white  fir,  Abies  grandis  Lindl.,  is  almost  as  abundant  and 
along  the  edge  of  the  meadow  far  outstrips  in  number  of  individuals  all 
other  trees.  Here  it  stands  in  striking  groups.  There  being  no  crowd- 
ing, its  branches  are  retained  to  the  ground  and  the  individuals  of  vary- 
ing sizes  form  conical  spires  which  excel  in  beauty  of  shape  and  in  artistic 
grouping  the  best  effects  of  the  landscape  gardener.  Douglas  fir  is  also 
mixed  with  the  white  pine  in  considerable  quantities.  The  white  pine 
woods  are  dense  and  dark,  and  are  alvvays  moist. 

The  underbrush  is  dense  and  uniform.  It  is  composed  chiefly  of 
huckleberry,  V accinium  macroph^llum  (Hook.)  Piper,  mixed  with  ser- 
vice berry,  Amelanchier  florida  Lindl.,  alder,  Alnus  sinuata  (Regel.) 
Rydberg.,  coral  berry,  Sy^mphoricarpos  racemosus  Michx..  honeysuckle, 
Lonicera  utahensis  Wats.,  Pachistima  m^rsirites  (Pursh)  Raf.,  and  the 


9 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

thimble  berry,  Rubus  parviflorus  Nutt.  The  ground  beneath  the  bushes 
is  covered  with  such  plants  as  the  dogwood,  Cornus  canadensis  L., 
meadow  rue,  Thalictrum  occidenlale  Gray,  Clinionia  uniflora  (Schult.) 
Kunth.,  false  miterwort,  Tiarella  unifoliata  Hook.,  false  Solomon’s  seal, 
Vagnera  sessilifolia  (Baker)  Greene,  and  the  twin  flower,  Linnaea 
americana  Forbes. 


The  Meadows. 

Coming  out  of  the  woods  into  the  meadows,  we  meet  with  very 
different  conditions.  While  the  woods  are  cool  and  moist,  in  August, 
the  meadows  are  hot  and  dry  and  the  ground  is  baked  hard.  Most  of 
the  meadows  are  under  cultivation  and  are  producing  large  crops  of  tim- 
othy. A few  of  them  are  growing  oats.  These  are  cut  in  the  milk  for 
hay.  Around  the  edges  of  the  cultivated  meadows  and  all  over  some 
small  uncultivated  ones,  the  native  vegetation  still  exists.  Wherever  it 
is  dry  enough  in  winter  for  the  trees  and  shrubs  to  encroach,  we  find  a 
few  spruces,  Picea  engelmanni  Parry,  white  firs  and  the  coral  berry. 
The  open  meadow  is  covered  with  a dense  growth  from  three  to  five 
feet  high  of  such  plants  as  yarrow,  Achillea  millefolium  var.  lanulosa 
(Nutt.)  Piper,  aster,  Aster  hendersoni,  fescue,  Festuca  sublata 
Trin.,  aconite,  Aconitum  columbianum  Nutt.,  false  bugbane,  Trautvel- 
teria  grandis  Nutt.,  golden  rod,  Solidago  elongata  Nutt.,  and  cinque- 
foil, Potentilla  nuttallii  Lehm.  or  a related  species. 

The  Bunch-Grass  Hills. 

The  bunch-grass  hills  which  form  the  fourth  vegetative  region  in- 
volved in  the  feeding  of  the  bands  of  sheep  which  are  herein  considered, 
lie  between  the  sage-brush  plains  and  the  yellow  pine  forests.  They 
form  the  region  called  by  plant  geographers  the  lower  Arid  Transition 
region.  These  hills  are  almost  entirely  under  cultivation.  TTie  land  is 
all  fenced  and  is  to  a very  large  extent  raising  wheat.  The  native  vege- 
tation which  once  covered  the  hills  consisted  largely  of  bunch-grass, 
Agropyron  spicatum  (Pursh)  Scribn.  & Smith,  mixed  with  numerous 
prairie  herbs.  Except  along  streams  in  the  valleys  or  on  very  steep  north 
hillsides  there  were  no  trees  and  shrubs.  The  native  vegetation  is  now 
so  scarce  that  it  does  not  enter  as  a factor  into  sheep  grazing.  The  wheat 
raised  on  these  hills  ripens  in  July  and  August  and  between  the  fifteenth 
of  July  and  the  first  of  October  is  harvested.  It  is  cut  with  a binder  and 
shocked  or  else  cut  with  a header,  but  in  any  case  is  threshed  direct  from 
the  field  without  stacking  before  the  winter  rains  come,  which  usually 
begin  between  September  fifteenth  and  October  first.  The  stubble 
fields  filled  with  straw,  shattered  grain,  wild  oats,  Avena  fatua  glabrata 
Petermann,  and  sprouting  weeds  are  thus  available  for  the  feeding  of 
sheep  in  October  and  November. 


10 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

THE  HERDING  SYSTEM. 

In  the  two  very  different  regions  of  the  summer  range,  the  yellow 
pine  and  the  white  pine,  the  two  bands  of  sheep  mentioned  above  were 
grazed  and  studied  in  the  month  of  August,  1911. 

The  typical  method  of  herding  them  was  as  follows:  The  herder 
established  his  camp  on  the  edge  of  a meadow,  near  a piece  of  level 
bottom  land,  or  on  the  edge  of  a clearing  on  a hill.  Here  was  the 
bedding  ground  of  the  sheep;  that  is,  the  place  where  they  were  gathered 
for  the  night.  To  this  same  ground  the  sheep  returned  every  night  till 
they  had  grazed  over  all  the  ground  available  from  this  point.  They 
were  then  moved  on  to  the  next  bedding  ground.  This  system  is  dia- 
grammatically  represented  in  figure  1 7,  which  represents  the  grazing  plan 
for  one  week.  In  this  case  the  sheep  were  moved  from  bedding  ground 
A to  bedding  ground  B on  the  first  day.  Bedding  ground  B is  located 
on  the  edge  of  a small  timothy  meadow  at  a point  where  two  or  three 
small  ravines  run  back  into  the  hills.  Early  on  the  second  morning  the 
sheep  begin  to  stir  and  are  guided  out  into  the  timber  in  the  region 
marked  2.  In  the  main  they  are  started  out  on  the  side  of  the  range 
opposite  the  ground  they  covered  the  day  before.  They  are  guided  and 
held  from  too  great  scattering  by  careful  quiet  circling  movements  of  the 
herder,  who,  after  an  early  breakfast  which  he  cooks  and  eats  at  his 
tent,  puts  in  the  most  of  the  forenoon  in  handling  the  sheep.  It  is  his 
effort  to  get  the  sheep  out  about  a mile  from  the  camp  in  the  forenoon 
and  to  spread  them  out  in  small  groups  so  that  all  will  have  an  opportu- 
nity to  feed.  Although  the  herder  usually  has  a couple  of  dogs  with 
him  he  uses  these  but  little  in  the  woods  except  in  an  emergency.  Dovs 
are  used  more  when  the  sheep  are  traveling  along  a public  road.  The 
McGregor  outfits  use  dogs  which  are  a cross  between  the  collie  and  the 
Australian  wolfhound.  Sheep  are  easily  frightened  and,  especially  in 
the  forenoon,  will,  if  disturbed,  hasten  back  to  last  night’s  bedding 
ground.  By  ten-thirty  or  eleven  o’clock  when  the  heat  of  the  day  has 
arrived,  the  sheep  find  their  way  into  the  deep  shade  and  lie  down  quietly 
for  a noon  siesta. 

When  the  sheep  settle  down  at  noon,  the  herder  goes  to  camp  and 
cooks  his  dinner.  About  two  or  two-thirty  o’clock  or  even  later  on  hot 
days,  the  sheep  rouse  themselves  and  begin  to  graze  back  toward  the 
bedding  ground.  The  herder  guides  them  back  on  the  side  of  the  graz- 
ing ground  next  to  yesterday’s  path,  hoping  thus  to  pick  up  any  stragglers 
which  may  have  been  lost  the  day  before  and  are  now  hunting  the 
other  sheep. 

By  five-thirty  or  six  o’clock  the  sheep  have  reached  camp.  The 
herder  scatters  small  piles  of  crushed  rock  salt  over  the  bedding  ground 
and  calls  his  sheep.  They  rush  out  of  the  woods,  lick  up  the  salt  and 
gather  closely  together  for  the  night.  For  an  hour  or  two  a period  of 
adjustment  occurs.  During  the  day,  lambs  and  their  mothers  have  be- 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range.  1 1 

come  separated.  They  now  call  each  other  and  get  together.  The 
shepherd  has  in  his  flock  a small  number  of  sheep  wearing  bells  and  a 
small  number  of  black  sheep.  The  number  of  bells  and  black  sheep 
varies  with  the  tastes  of  the  different  herders.  It  is  impossible  for  him 
to  count  his  whole  flock  of  approximately  3000  sheep  except  with  help 
and  at  rare  intervals,  but  each  night  he  counts  his  bells  and  his  black 
sheep.  If  one  of  these  js  missing  he  scours  the  feeding  ground  for  lost 
sheep.  Knowing  the  gregarious  habit  of  his  sheep,  if  all  his  bells  and 
black  sheep  are  present,  he  is  reasonably  sure  that  no  large  group  of 
sheep  is  likely  to  be  missing.  The  first  night  on  a new  bedding  ground 
is  the  most  difficult  night.  So  fixed  is  the  habit  of  the  sheep  to  return  to 
the  old  bedding  ground  that  continual  care  must  be  exercised  during  the 
afternoon  and  evening  to  get  them  all  together  at  the  new  place. 

On  the  third,  fourth  and  succeeding  days,  the  sheep  are  handled 
as  they  were  on  the  second  day,  till  the  range  available  from  the  bedding 
ground  is  exhausted.  If  the  camp  is  established  on  the  edge  of  a cul- 
tivated hay  meadow,  the  feeding  grounds  will  probably  all  lie  to  one 
side  of  the  bedding  ground  as  shown  in  figure  1 7.  In  other  cases  the 
feeding  grounds  may  radiate  in  all  directions.  In  any  event  the  feeding 
ground  which  lies  in  the  direction  of  the  next  bedding  ground  is  saved 
until  the  last  day. 

On  moving  day,  the  herder  starts  the  sheep  out  in  the  morning  and 
moves  them  during  the  day  toward  the  new  bedding  ground,  endeavoring 
to  get  them  there  rather  early  in  the  day  so  that  he  may  have  plenty  of 
time  to  make  camp  and  pick  up  stragglers.  Meanwhile  the  boss  or  his 
helper  has  come  with  a wagon  and  loaded  the  herder’s  camp  outfit,  his 
tent,  his  stove,  his  bedding,  and  his  grub  box  and  moved  them  around 
by  convenient  roads  to  the  new  camp  site.  Here  he  pitches  the  tent  and 
sets  up  the  camp  and  if  necessary  helps  the  herder  to  gather  in  the  strag- 
glers. From  this  new  bedding  ground  the  feeding  system  is  repeated. 

Sometimes  when  the  feeding  grounds  are  far  from  roads  and  in 
regions  where  wild  animals  are  few,  the  herder  will  bed  the  sheep  for 
a tew  nights  away  from  his  camp,  but  even  then  many  of  the  sheep  will 
often  take  matters  in  their  own  hands  and  return  to  the  old  bedding 
ground  at  night. 

In  the  Mica  Mountain  region,  no  effort  is  made  to  water  the  sheep. 
The  forage  in  the  woods  is  so  succulent  that  the  sheep  go  for  days  at  a 
time  without  drinking  water. 

While  the  herders  thus  remain  inseparable  from  their  sheep,  the  two 
camp  tenders,  the  boss  and  his  helper,  are  headquartered  at  what  is  called 
the  ‘ horse  camp,”  in  a convenient  fenced  meadow  from  which  the 
timothy  has  been  cut  and  the  use  of  which  they  have  leased  from  some 
farmer.  Here  they  pasture  their  saddle  horses  and  draft  mules  and 
keep  extra  dogs  for  the  herders.  Here  also  they  pitch  their  tent  and  eat 
and  sleep.  During  the  day  they  are  busy,  as  explained  above,in  caring 
for  the  wants  of  the  herders  and  the  sheep.  When  a convenient  fenced 


1 2 Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

pasture  for  the  horsecamp  is  not  available,  as  is  often  the  case  early  in 
the  season  before  the  timothy  meadows  have  been  mowed,  the  tenders 
camp  with  the  herders  and  depend  upon  hobbles  to  keep  their  horses 
from  straying. 

WHAT  THE  SHEEP  EAT. 

The  author’s  notes  on  the  food  plants  of  the  sheep  have  been  gained 
by  spending  the  days  in  the  woods  with  the  sheep,  watching  their  feeding 
habits,  identifying  the  plants  as  they  ate  them,  and  collecting  herbarium 
specimens  of  the  various  species.  Sets  of  the  plants  collected  have  been 
deposited  in  the  Washington  State  College  Herbarium  and  in  the  United 
States  National  Herbarium. 

The  determination  of  the  actual  plants  eaten  is  made  somewhat 
difficult  by  the  timidity  of  the  sheep.  It  was  only  by  the  exercise  of 
great  patience  and  care  that  one  could  get  among  the  sheep  and  close 
enough  to  them  to  make  exact  observations.  Especially  was  this  true  in 
the  forenoons.  The  desired  result  was  attained  usually  by  posting  ones- 
self  on  a convenient  log  or  stump  ahead  of  and  in  the  path  of  the  sheep, 
remaining  perfectly  quiet,  making  no  sudden  movements  and  observing 
most  of  the  eating  by  the  aid  of  a pair  of  binoculars. 

In  both  regions  studied,  the  sheep  spent  most  of  their  time  eating 
shrubby  plants  and  young  brush.  Very  little  attention  was  paid  by  them 
to  the  grasses  and  herbs  which  grow  close  to  the  ground.  A fair  esti- 
mate is  that  two-thirds  to  three-fourths  of  the  sheep’s  time  was  devoted 
to  the  layer  of  brush,  while  the  remaining  one-fourth  to  one-third  was 
spent  eating  the  herbs  on  the  ground.  In  this  respect  they  differed  from 
those  mentioned  in  the  usual  reports  on  the  food  habits  of  sheep,  which 
mostly  devote  their  attention  to  the  “grasses”  which  the  sheep  eat  and 
discuss  them  as  if  their  chief  food  consisted  of  grasses  and  tender  herbs. 
Some  authors  have  mentioned  the  browsing  of  sheep  on  the  herbage  of 
shrubs  and  trees  but  most  of  the  literature  on  the  subject  neglects  this 
phase  of  the  feeding.  This  may  perhaps  be  due  to  the  fact  that  in  other 
regions  the  shrubs  do  not  form  as  important  a factor  in  the  food  supply 
of  the  sheep. 

The  brush  was  eaten  as  high  as  the  sheep  could  reach.  Often  they 
would  climb  upon  a log  or  on  the  raised  butt  of  a fallen  tree  to  gather 
leaves,  young  twigs,  and  fruit  of  some  bush  or  young  tree  which  were  far 
beyond  their  reach  from  the  ground.  Where  the  shrubs  grew  tall  and 
were  especially  desirable,  they  would  stand  on  their  hind  feet  and  beat 
down  the  brush  with  their  bodies  till  they  could  reach  much  of  the  upper 
parts  of  the  foliage. 

The  White  Pine  Forests. 

In  the  white  pine  forests  the  principal  sheep  food  plant  is  the 
huckleberry,  V accinium  macroph^llum  (Hook.)  Piper.  This  plant 
forms  a large  part  of  the  shrubby  undergrowth.  The  bushes  are  vase- 


13 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

shaped  and  vary  from  one  to  five  feet  in  height.  In  August,  1911,  they 
were  full  of  luscious  acid  berries,  sometimes  dark  red  but  usually  blue- 
black  in  color,  and  the  young  twigs  were  covered  with  large  tender 
leaves.  In  the  dense  woods,  these  leaves  remained  more  or  less  moist 
and  succulent  all  day  long. 

In  addition* to  the  huckleberry,  this  region  furnished  an  abundance 

- of  shrubby  growth  of  various  other  species  which  the  sheep  consumed 
• with  relish.  The  following  grazing  notes  were  here  taken: 

Plants  of  the  White  Pine  Forests  Which  the  Sheep 
Eat  Readily  and  Use  Much  for  Food. 

Vaccinium  macrophyllum  (Hook.)  Piper.  Broad  leaved  huckleberry. 

The  most  important  sheep  food  in  the  white  pine  region. 
S^mphoricarpos  racemosus  Michx.  Coral  berry.  Very  much  liked  by 
the  sheep.  Especially  abundant  near  the  edges  of  the  woods. 
Amelanchier  florida  Lindl.  Service  berry.  Well  liked  but  not  very 
leafy  and  not  very  abundant  in  the  deep  woods. 

' 'Acer  douglasi  Hook.  Maple.  Well  liked  but  not  very  abundant.  The 
sheep  climb  high  to  get  the  leaves  of  this. 

Rosa  nutkana  Presl.  Rather  abundant  and  much  eaten. 

Cornus  stolonifera  Michx.  Red  dogwood.  Well  liked  and  fairly 
abundant. 

Thermopsis  montana  ovata  Robinson.  Well  liked  but  not  abundant. 
Menziesia  glabella  Gray.  Abundant  and  much  eaten  but  not  supplied 
with  a very  large  amount  of  foliage. 

Lonicera  utahensis  Wats.  Honeysuckle.  Abundant  and  much  eaten. 

- Spiraea  cor'pmbosa  Raf.  Spirea.  Much  eaten  but  too  small  to  furnish 
-,;{i  ■ a very  great  amount  of  food. 

Rosa  gymnocarpa  Nutt.  Rose.  Rather  abundant  and  much  eaten. 
_Alnus  oregona  Nutt.  Alder.  Abundant  and  much  eaten. 
iVagnera  sessili folia  (Baker)  Greene.  False  Solomon’s  seal.  One  of 
i;!  the  delicate  herbs  which  was  much  relished  by  the  sheep  and  was 
; fairly  abundant. 

i'  - . Plants  Eaten  Very  Little  and  of  No  Practical 
Grazing  Importance. 

Pachistima  m^rsinites  (Pursh)  Raf.  This  rather  pretty  evergreen  shrub 
is  occasionally  nibbled  at  by  sheep  but  although  it  is  very  abundant 
in  these  woods  it  furnishes  practically  no  food  to  the  sheep  because 
of  their  dislike  for  it. 

Rubus  parviflorus  Nutt.  Thimble  berry.  This  large  leaved  plant  is 
abundant  in  the  white  pine  woods.  It  is,  however,  not  often  touched 
by  the  sheep.  It  forms  no  appreciable  factor  in  their  food  supply. 
Holodiscus  discolor  Maxim.  Ocean  spray.  For  some  unaccountable 
reason  the  sheep  eat  but  little  of  this  abundant  shrub. 

Cornus  canadensis  L.  Dogwood. 


14 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

Clintonia  uniflora  (Schult.)  Kunth. 

Chimaphila  umbellata  (L.)  Nutt.  Princess  pine. 

Linnaea  americana  Forbes.  Twin  flower. 

P^rola  picta  inlegra  (Gray)  Piper.  Shin  leaf. 

Pyrola  bracteata  Hook. 

The  last  six  plants  form  a considerable  part  of  the  surface  vege- 
tation under  the  trees  and  bushes.  They  are  nibbled  a little  by  the 
sheep  but  none  of  them  are  relished  and  they  play  but  little  part  in  the 
food  question. 

Plants  Not  Eaten  at  All. 

A thorium  cpclosorum  Rupr.  Spleen  wort. 

Phegopteris  dr^opteris  (L.)  Fee.  Oak  fern. 

Pol'pstichum  munitum  (Presl.)  Kaulf. 

Abies  grandis  Lindl.  White  fir. 

Pinus  monticola  Dough  White  pine. 

Pseudotsuga  mucronala  (Raf.)  Sudw.  Douglas  fir  of  red  fir. 

At  this  season  of  the  year  (August) , other  food  is  abundant  and 
the  ferns  and  conifers  are  practically  never  eaten.  During  the  four 
weeks  in  which  the  writer  studied  the  habits  of  6000  sheep,  he  saw  one 
sheep  eat  a few  leaflets  of  A thorium  c^closorum  once. 

The  sheep  are  very  fond  of  various  species  of  mushrooms 
{Agaricus  and  related  genera)  but  these  can  scarcely  be  said  to  have 
much  food  value. 

The  Meadows  in  the  White  Pine  Region. 

Strange  as  it  may  seem,  the  meadows  which  under  cultivation 
produce  large  crops  of  timothy  hay  and  are  so  valuable  in  other  forms 
of  agriculture  are  of  little  value  in  sheep  grazing.  The  plants  of  the 
meadow  are  too  dry  and  the  meadow  is  too  hot  and  light.  The  sheep 
prefer  the  dense  woods  and  the  moist  succulent  plants  of  those  woods. 
In  the  early  morning  and  in  the  evening  when  the  meadows  are  cooler 
and  are  moist  with  dew  the  sheep  will  graze  upon  them.  In  the  middle 
of  the  day  they  will  scarcely  touch  them.  Since  the  larger  ones  are 
under  cultivation  by  private  owners  or  lessees,  it  is  only  the  very  small 
ones  and  the  edges  of  the  larger  ones  that  are  accessible  to  the  sheep. 
Here  such  plants  as  the  following  were  readily  eaten  and  furnished  food. 

Plants  of  the  Meadows  Which  Were  Eaten 
AND  Furnished  Food. 

Trauivetteria  grandis  Nutt.  False  bugbane.  This  plant  has  large 
leaves  with  long  petioles.  It  is  eaten  with  avidity. 

Rudbecl(ia  occidentalis  Nutt.  Cone  flower.  Abundant  along  the  edge 
of  the  meadows  and  readily  eaten  in  the  evenings. 

V erairum  calif ornicum  Durand.  False  hellebore.  The  sheep  are  ex- 
traordinarily fond  of  this  plant,  which  grows  in  wet  places  at  the 
edges  of  meadows  and  in  ravines  in  the  woods.  When  they  strike 


15 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

a patch  of  it  they  eat  it  clean  leaving  nothing  but  about  an  inch 
of  the  central  core  of  the  stem  projecting  above  ground.  This 
plant  is  reputedly  poisonous.  This  phase  of  the  question  is  dis- 
cussed later.  (Fig.  8.) 

Solidago  elongaia  Nutt.  Golden  rod.  Abundant  and  eaten  in  the 
• evenings. 

Thalictrum  occidenlale  Gray.  Meadow  rue.  Eaten  in  the  evenings 
but  not  very  leafy. 

Aconitum  columbianum  Nutt.  Aconite.  Eaten  in  the  evenings. 
Possesses  considerable  foliage. 

Festuca  subulaia  Trin.  Fescue.  A tall  grass  but  not  furnishing  a great 
amount  of  forage. 

Castilleja  m'miaia  Dough  Indian  paint  brush.  Eaten  only  in  the 
evenings. 

Potentilla  nuttallii  Lehm.  Cinque  foil.  Eaten  in  the  evenings. 

There  seemed  to  be  no  plants  on  the  edges  of  the  meadow  which 
the  sheep  consistently  avoided.  If  they  ate  there  at  all  they  ate  every- 
thing. They  swept  over  the  ground  and  mowed  it  clean. 

The  eagerness  with  which  the  sheep  ate  V eratrum  cal'if ornicum  is 
quite  interesting  in  the  light  of  the  reputed  poisonous  qualities  of  this 
plant.  Many  farmers  are  in  the  habit  of  attributing  to  it  the  death  of 
sheep,  cattle,  and  horses.  On  the  smaller  Vassar  meadow  near  the 
south  end  there  was  a large  quantity  of  this  plant.  With  its  large  green 
leaves  and  panicles  of  young  fruits  it  stood  about  five  feet  high  and  was 
mixed  with  other  typical  meadow  plants.  On  one  evening  the  writer 
saw  the  sheep  sweep  over  this  patch  and  in  less  than  fifteen  minutes 
east  every  V eratrum  plant  clean  on  about  one  acre.  As  is  shown 
in  figure  8,  they  left  nothing  but  a stub.  The  writer  has  also  re- 
ceived a report  from  near  Lake  Pend  d’Oreille,  in  Idaho,  of  horses 
eating  and  relishing  this  plant.  There  is  no  doubt  but  that  for  sheep  at 
least  his  plant  is  not  only  not  poisonous,  but  is  greatly  relished  and  is 
a useful  article  of  food. 

The  Yellow  Pine  Forests. 

In  the  yellow  pine  forests  the  principal  food  plant  is  the  buck- 
brush, Ceanothus  sanguineus  Pursh.  The  sheep  are  very  fond  of  this 
plant.  They  strip  it  of  leaves  and  fruits  as  high  as  they  can  reach  and 
beat  down  the  taller  bushes  with  their  necks  and  bodies  and  eat  up  just 
as  far  as  they  can.  Higher  up  on  the  mountains  the  sticky  laurel, 
Ceanothus  velutinus  Dough,  replaces  the  buckbrush  in  the  vegetation. 
It  is  equally  relished  by  the  sheep,  but  in  the  region  studied  the  sheep 
rarely  got  up  to  it.  The  fruits  of  both  of  these  species  of  Ceanothus 
are  very  oily  and  are  very  fattening.  Sheep  grazing  upon  them  become 
sleek  and  fat  very  quickly.  These  two  plants  are  the  most  fattening 


16 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

on  the  range  and  altogether  are  the  most  valuable  sheep  food  plants  in 
this  whole  region. 

While  buckbrush  is  the  most  abundant  shrub  in  he  yellow 
pine  forest,  there  are  a number  of  other  shrubby  plants  which  are  also 
used  for  food.  < ’ 

Plants  of  the  Yellow  Pine  Forests  Which 
THE  Sheep  Eat. 

Ceanothus  sanguineus  Pursh.  Buckbrush. 

Ceanothus  velutinus  Dough  Sticky  laurel. 

The  two  most  important  food  plants  of  the  region. 
S'^mphoricarpos  racemosus  Michx.  Coral  berry.  This  plant  is  quite 
abundant  in  the  yellow  pine  forests  and  ranks  next  to  the  buck- 
brush as  a food  plant. 

Opulaster  pauciflorus  Piper.  Ninebark.  The  sheep  eat  the. flowers, 
and  ^the  surrounding  bracts  of  this  plant  but  eat  very  few  of  the 
leaves.  ...  . .i, 

Acer  douglasii  Hook.  Maple.  . , . 

Thalictrum  occideniale  Gray.  Meadow  rue. 

V agnera  sessilifolia  (Baker)  Greene.  False  Solomon’s  seal.  ' 

These  three  plants  are  eaten  in  the  yellow  pine  region  and  bear 
about  the  same  relation  to  the  forage  as  they  do  in  the  white  pine 
woods  and  meadows. 

Berheris  repens  Lindl.  Oregon  grape.  ’ M • 

Cornus  occidentalis  (Torr.  & Gray)  Coville.  Dogwood. 

Both  of  these  plants  are  eaten  readily  but  are  not  sufficiently  abun- 
dant to  be  great  factors  in  the  food  supply.  ' 

Coptis  occidentalis  (Nutt.)  Torr.  Goldthread.  Eaten  a great  deal  by 
the  sheep  but  not  large  enough  to  be  important. 

Cornus  canadensis  L.  Dogwood.  This  plant  seemed  to  be  eaten  more 
by  the  sheep  which  were  grazing  in  the  yellow  pine  than  by  those 
grazing  in  the  white  pine.  ' ^ ' 

Spiraea  cor'pmbosa  Raf.  Spirea.  ' Readily  eaten  but  too  small  to  be 
important. 

Plants  Which  the  Sheep  Do  Not  Eat. 

Arctostaph'plos  uva-ursi  (L.)  Spreng.  Kinnikinnick. 

Rubus  parviflorus  Nutt.  Thimble  berry. 

Chimaphila  umbellata  (L.)  Nutt.  Princess  pine. 

These  three  plants  are  very  rarely  eaten  by  the  sheep  and  enter 
not  at  all  into  the  food  supply  for  sheep  of  this  region. 

EFFECT  OF  GRAZING  ON  THE  FORnST. 

Upon  the  questions  connected  with  the  effect  of  sheep-  grazing 
on  the  reproduction,  fire  protection,  and  other  problems  of  forest  man- 
agement there  are  many  differences  of  opinion.  Many  conclusions  have 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range.  1 7 

been  drawn  based  only  on  local  data  or  on  the  mere  opinions  and 
prejudices  of  the  men  involved.  Such  conclusions  are  not  only  unscien- 
tific but  they  have  often  been  the  cause  of  mistaken  forest  policy  and 
much  ill-feeling  among  the  parties  affected. 

The  facts  herein  presented  and  the  conclusions  drawn  relate  only 
to  the  conditions  as  described  herein  when  well-managed  bands  of  sheep 
were  being  grazed  on  leased  land  which  had  an  abundance  of  forage 
for  the  number  of  sheep  which  it  was  sustaining. 

Forest  Reproduction. 

As  far  as  the  trees  which  make  up  the  wood  products  of  this 
forest  are  concerned,  the  sheep  grazing  observed  had  absolutely  no  dele- 
terious effect  upon  reproduction.  The  sheep  never  ate  the  young  conif- 
erous trees  or  any  of  their  foliage.  There  are  no  hardwoods  produced 
in  this  region.  The  herding  system  described  above  so  scattered  the 
sheep  that  there  was  no  serious  trampling  or  breaking  of  seedlings  and 
young  trees.  The  trails  formed  by  the  sheep  were  not  deeply  cut  ex- 
cept in  the  neighborhood  of  the  bedding  grounds. 

The  sheep  feeding  described  had  no  deleterious  effect  on  the 
shrubby  plants  and  herbs  of  the  region.  The  brush  was  as  abundant 
when  the  grazing  grounds  were  re-examined  in  the  summer  of  1912  as 
it  was  before  the  sheep  reached  it  in  1911.  Compare  figures  5 and  6 
taken  on  the  same  hillside  in  1911  and  1912.  Even  the  bedding 
grounds  of  the  sheep  were  not  all  ruined  by  the  excessive  tramping  and 
over-grazing,  as  is  usually  contended  by  the  oppjonents  of  sheep  graz- 
ing. Figures  7,  8,  and  9 were  taken  on  the  same  bedding  ground; 
figures  7 and  8 in  1911,  just  after  the  sheep  had  passed  over  it,  and 
figure  9 in  1912,  after  it  had  a winter  and  spring  to  recover.  The 
sheep  were  bedded  here  for  five  nights  in  1911. 

Figure  1 3 represents  a piece  of  ground  which  according  to  the 
men  in  charge  of  the  sheep  they  had  used  for  four  nights  as  a bedding 
ground  in  1910.  It  was  taken  before  the  sheep  reached  it  in  1911. 
The  spontaneous  growth  of  timothy  which  has  occurred  is  greater  than 
is  often  found  on  planted  meadows.  Across  the  road  from  it  is  a 
patch  of  coral  berry  which  was  grazed  clean  in  1910.  It  is  repre- 
sented after  its  recovery  in  1911  in  figure  1 4. 

The  only  bedding  ground  observed  which  had  really  suffered  and 
had  not  recovered  from  its  previous  year’s  grazing  is  illustrated  in  fig- 
ures 11  and  12.  Figure  11  represents  it  after  the  sheep  had  been 
bedded  on  it  two  nights  in  1911.  They  remained  there  altogether 
eight  nights.  The  herder  had  planned  to  bed  them  up  on  the  ridge 
after  the  third  night  but  the  habits  of  the  sheep  were  too  strong  and 
they  returned  to  this  bedding  ground  every  night.  The  plants  which 
originally  occupied  this  ground  were  of  the  type  usually  found  on  the 
edges  of  meadows  and  were  mostly  tall  weedy  herbs,  and  of  little 
forage  value. 


1 8 Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

Fire  Protection. 

b’C:.-  The  actual  grazing  of  the  sheep  has  little  bearing  on  the  fire  pro- 
tection* of  the  forests  examined.  The  eating  of  the  shrubby  underbrush 
removes  sonie  of  the  danger  of  the  start  and  spread  of  ground  fires."  But 
the  sheep  do  not  touch  the  young  pines  and  firs  and  spruces  and  these 
burn  much  more  readily  than  do  the  deciduous  shrubs  and  trees.  The 
presence  of  the  sheepmen  in  the  woods  is,  however,  an  aid  in  fire  pro- 
tection. The  first  and  most  essential  thing  in  fighting  a forest  fire  is 
to  know  quickly  that  one  exists  and  to  have  some  one  there  before  it  is 
large.  The  sheepmen  fear  fire.  Their  sheep,  are  very  unwieldy  and  in 
case  of  a fire  of  any  size  would  be  destroyed  in  large  numbers.  They 
are,  therefote,  very  watchful  of  'camp  fires,  both  of  their  oWn  and  of 
other  campers  whom  they  may  find  in  the  woods.  The  woods'  during 
the  huekleberry  season  are  well  filled  with  campers,  many  of  whom  are 
inex^rienced  and  do  not  realize  the  fire-danger.  The  she^mert' arfe 
constantly:  on  the  lookout- and  are  ready  to  get  word  to  the 'fore'sf' fire 
patrol  and  to  stamp  out  a fire  in  its  incipiency.  They  clear  out  the  roads 
so  that  they  may  move  their  sheep  and  camp  supplies  and  thus  make  the 
country  accessible  to  the  fire  fighters.  ... 

The  usual  contention  that  it  is  to  the  interest  of  the  owner  of  stock 
to  bum  over  the  forest  floor  and  thus  to  induce  a new  growth  of  Weeds 
and  grass  can  not  apply  to  the  sheepmen  in  this  region.  Weeds  and 
grass  are  not  what  he  wants.  He  wants  the  dense  woods  full  of  moist 
And  succulent  brush  and  these  would  be  desroyed  by  a forest-'  fite. 
In  the.  Pacific  Northwest,  the  fire  season  is  the  months  of  July,  August, 
and  September.  These  are  the  months  when  the  sheep  are  in  the' woods 
and  when  the  sheepmen  most  dread  the  fires. 

After  the  forest  is  logged  and  burned  over,  it  is  several  years 
before  the  brush  re-establishes  itself  to  such  an  extent  as  to  form  good 
grazing.  Figure  15  shows  a piece  of  yellow  pine  land  which  was 
burned  over,  by  the  owner,  the  lumber  company,  after  logging  oper- 
ations in*.  b907,  four' years  before.  It  is  not  yet  as  valuable  for  sheep 
grazing  ^as'-unburned  land.  ‘ ' 

Relations  of  the  Sheepmen  and  Local  Farmers.  ..  " 

In  the  days  of  the  open  and  uncontrolled  range,  much  ill-feeling 
and  hostility  arose  between  the  sheepmen  and  the  local  farmers  of  the 
region  grazed  over  who  were  usually  trying  to  raise  some  cattle  and 
horses.  The  present  leasing  system  followed  by  the  Potlatch  Lumber 
Company  eliminates  all  such  difficulty.  .The  sheepman  pays. for  and  owns 
the  grazing  on  certain  definite  tracts  of  land.  The  farmers  have' their 
own  land  pr  lease  definite  tracts  from  the  lumber  ‘company..  E.ach 
party  .knows  his  own  land  and  respects  the  other  rrian’s  ^rights.  v 
' . In.  the  olden  days  under  the  “first  come  first  served’’  system:  of 
the  open  , range,  each  year  saw  a race  between  sheepmen  , for ' the;;  best 
la,Qd.  The  finest  grazing  was  the  most  overstocked.  Such  strenpous 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range.  1 9 

competition  resulted  always  in  the  disregarding  of  the  rights  of  others 
and'hostility  was  the  inevitable  outcome. 

The  writer  believes  that  such  grazing  as  is  here 'reported  of  sheep 
oh  mountain  summer  range  is  a very  important  and  vatebf^^-^kctor’^  in 
the  development  of  sheep  raising  in  the  nofthwBt.  ^ The^’  passing  of  the 
open,  uncontrolled  range  should  not  mean' the  passing' of  sheep  grazing. 
Sheep  are  valuable  animals  for  any  country  and  Wtee”so  much  range 
land  must  always  remain  available,  it  ought  to  be  used  wisdy  under  a 
leasing  system  so  that  it  will  not  be  abused,  for  the  prbduction  of  a 
large  amount  of  mutton  and  wool.  ^ ,’T'  ' '' 

SUMMARY.  '■  >> 

1 . The  use  of  the  winter  range  is  conditioned  on  the  use  of  summer 

ranee.  , ;; 

2.  In  the  region  studied,  shrubby  plants  and’ brush  are  much  more 

important  as  sheep  food  than  are  grasses  and  herbs. 

3.  The  principal  food  plant  of  the  yellow  pine  forest  is  the  buck- 

brush. Its  two  species  are  by  far  the  most  fattening  plants 
on  the  range. 

4.  The  principal  food  plant  of  the  white  pine  forest  is  the  huckle- 

berry. 

5.  Under  the  conditions  observed,  the  sheep  never  eat  ferns  and 

conifers. 

6.  Well  managed  sheep  grazing  is  having  no  deleterious  effect  on 

the  reproduction  of  the  forest  or  of  its  grazing  plants.  ^ 

' 7.  The  presence  of  the  sheepmen  in  the  forest  during  the  fire  season 
is  an  assistance  in  fire  protection. 

8.  The  leasing  system  for  grazing  lands  tends  to  eliminate  injurious 

competition,  over-grazing,  and  grazing  feuds,  and  is  by  far 
the  most  satisfactory  method  of  handling  these  lands. 

9.  Well-managed  sheep  grazing,  such  as  is  here  reported,  is  a val- 

uable and  important  factor  in  the  sheep  business  of  the 
northwest.  Such  grazing  should  be  encouraged  and  cxten^d 
till  every  square  mile  of  available  .summer  and  winter  range 
is  in  use  and  the  wool  and  mutton  used  in  the  northwest  is 
produced  in  the  northwest. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY.' 

\.  Anonymous.  The  Use  of  the  National  Forests.  Forest  Service. 
1907. 

'2.  Anonymous.  National  Forest  Fire  Losses  Show  Need  of  De- 
veloping Wider  Use  of  the  Range.  Forest  Leaves.  Vol. 
13:  page  7.  F 1911.  U.' 

3.  Anonymous.  Grazing  Examiners.  American  Forestry.  Vol. 
17:  page  176.  Mr  1911.  // 


20  Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range. 

4.  Anonymous.  New  Grazing  Regulations.  American  Forestry. 

Vol.  I 7 : page  236.  Ap  1911. 

5.  Anonymous.  Report  on  Supervisors’  Meeting  at  Denver,  Colo- 

rado. Forestry  Quarterly.  Vol.  9:  page  446.  S 1911. 

6.  Bentley,  H.  L.  Cattle  Ranges  of  the  Southwest.  U.  S.  D.  A. 

Farmers  Bulletin  72.  1 898. 

7.  Cotton,  J.  S.  A Report  on  the  Range  Conditions  of  Central 

Washington.  Wash.  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  60.  1904. 

8.  Cotton,  J.  S.  Range  Management  in  the  State  of  Washington. 

U.  S.  D.  A.  Bu.  Pi.  Ind.  Bui.  75.  23  My  1905. 

9.  Coville,  Frederick  V.  Forest  Growth  and  Sheep  Grazing  in  the 

Cascade  Mountains  of  Oregon.  U.  S.  D.  A.  Div.  For. 
Bui.  15.  1898. 

10.  Graves,  Henry  S.  Grazing  and  Fires  in  National  Forests. 

American  Forestry.  Vol.  17;  page  435.  J1  1911. 

1 1 . Griffiths,  David.  A Protected  Stock  Range  in  Arizona.  U.  S. 

D.  A.  Bu.  PI.  Ind.  Bui.  1 77.  1910. 

1 2.  Hitchcock,  A.  S.  Cultivated  Forage  Crops  of  the  Northwestern 
States.  U.  S.  D.  A.  Bu.  PI.  Ind.  Bui.  31.  1902. 

1 3.  Jardine,  James  T.  Preliminary  Report  on  Grazing  Experiments 
in  a Coyote-Proof  Pasture.  Forest  Service  Circ.  156.  1903. 

1 4.  Kennedy,  P.  Beveridge  and  Doten,  Samuel  B.  A Preliminary 

Report  on  the  Summer  Range  of  Western  Nevada  Sheep. 
Nevada  Agricultural  Experiment  Station  Bui.  51.  D 1901. 

15.  Kennedy,  P.  Beveridge.  Summer  Ranges  of  Eastern  Nevada 

Sheep.  Nev.  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  55.  N 1903. 

16.  Mackie,  W.  W.  The  Value  of  Oak  Leaves  for  Forage.  Calif. 

Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  150.  Ap  1903. 

1 7.  Merriam,  C.  H.  Life  Zones  and  Crop  Zones.  U.  S.  D.  A. 
Div.  Biol.  Surv.  Bui.  1 0. 

18.  Piper,  Charles  V.  Flora  of  the  State  of  Washington.  Cont. 

U.  S.  Nat.  Herb.  Vol.  11.  1906. 

19.  Roth,  Filbert.  Grazing  in  the  Forest  Reserves.  U.  S.  D.  A. 

Yearbook.  1901:  pages  333-348. 

20.  Sampson,  Arthur  W.  and  Coville,  Frederick  V.  The  Revege- 

tation of  Overgrazed  Range  Areas.  U.  S.  D.  A.  Forest 
Service.  Circ.  158.  7 D 1908. 

21.  Smith,  Jared  G.  Grazing  Problems  in  the  Southwest  and  How 

to  Meet  Them.  U.  S.  D.  A.  Div.  Agrost.  Bui.  1 6. 
1 899. 

22.  Spragg,  Frank  A.  Forage  Conditions  of  Central  Montana.  Mont. 

Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  36.  Je  1902. 

23.  Thornber,  John  J.  The  Grazing  Ranges  of  Arizona.  Ariz. 

Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  65.  21  S 1910. 

24.  Wilcox,  Early  Vernon.  Sheep  and  the  Forests.  The  Forum. 

Vol.  31  : pages  31  1-317.  My  1901. 


Plants  Used  by  Sheep  on  Mountain  Range.  21 

25.  Wilcox,  Early  Vernon.  The  Grazing  Industry.  Hawaii  Agric. 

Exp.  Sta.  1911. 

26.  Wilson,  James.  Forests  and  the  Livestock  Industry.  For.  Serv. 

Circ.  35 : page  22.  1905. 


PLATE  I 


Fig.  1.  Sheep  gathered  on  the  bedding  ground,  settling  down  for  the  night. 
This  bedding  ground  is  on  a small  meadow  south  of  the  Windus  meadow.  The 
meadow  has  not  been  cultivated  and  is  covered  with  its  native  flora. 


Fig.  2.  Sheep  grazing  on  the  edge  of  the  Round  Vassar  meadow.  The  forest 
in  the  background  is  chiefly  white  pine  and  white  fir. 


PLATE  11. 


Fig.  3.  Lundsford’s  meadow.  The  Mica  Mountains  show  in  the  background. 
The  trees  in  the  foreground  are  yellow  pine. 


Fig.  4.  A corner  of  the  Round  Vassar  meadow.  The  trees  are  mostly  white 
pine  and  white  fir. 


PLATE  III. 


Fig.  5.  A typical  feeding  ground  in  the  while  pine  forest.  The  bushes  in  the 
foreground  are  the  broad-leaved  huckleberry,  the  chief  food  plant  for  sheep  in  this 
region.  The  large  trees  are  white  pines. 


Fig.  6.  A similar  spot  in  the  white  pine  forest  just  after  the  sheep  had  grazed 
over  it.  It  is  evident  that  they  have  done  but  little  damage  to  the  huckleberry  brush. 


PLATE  IV. 


Fig.  7.  At  the  edge  of  the  Round  Vassar  meadow.  The  sheep  had  just  grazed 
this  for  the  first  time.  Here  they  were  bedded  for  five  nights. 


Fig.  8.  Near  the  spot  shown  in  Fig.  7.  The  white  stubs  in  the  foreground  are 
the  bases  of  the  stems  of  Verairum  californicum  which  the  sheep  had  just  eaten  to  the 
ground  a few  minutes  before  the  picture  was  made. 


PLATE  V. 


Fig.  9.  The  same  ground  as  shown  in  Figs.  7 and  8,  showing  the  vegetation 
which  had  sprung  up  one  year  later  before  the  sheep  reached  the  place.  There  was 
no  injury  to  this  bedding  ground. 


Fig.  10.  The  Yellow  Pine  region  on  the  Mica  Mountains.  Buckbrush 
(Ceanothus  Sanguineus)  in  the  foreground,  which  has  just  been  grazed  by  the  sheep. 
The  leaves  and  fruits  are  eaten  as  high  as  the  sheep  can  reach. 


A J 


PLATF  VI. 


biG.  11.  The  bedding  ground  behind  the  camp  shown  In  Fig.  16,  after  the 
sheep  had  been  on  it  two  nights.  It  was  originally  covered  with  a dense  growth  of 
herbaceous  weeds. 


Fig.  12.  The  same  bedding  ground  as  pictured  in  Fig.  11,  taken  one  year  later, 
before  the  sheep  reached  it.  This  was  the  only  bedding  ground  which  was  Injured  by 
the  sheep. 


PLATE  VII. 


Fig.  13.  The  year  before  this  picture  was  taken  this  was  a bedding  ground  of 
the  sheep  and  was  grazed  clean.  One  could  scarcely  ask  for  a better  stand  of  timothy. 


Fig.  14.  This  is  just  across  the  road  from  Fig.  13,  and  shows  coral-berry  which 
was  grazed  clean  the  year  before.  Note  the  perfect  recovery. 


PLATE  VIII. 


Fig.  15.  A piece  of  yellow  pine  forest  near  Yale,  Idaho,  which  has  been  logged 
and  burned.  The  vegetation  is  not  as  favorable  for  sheep  grazing  as  it  was  before 
burning.  The  burn  is  four  years  old. 


Fig.  16.  A sheepherder’s  camp.  The  bedding  ground  of  the  sheep  shown  in 
Figs.  1 1 and  12  lies  just  behind  this  tent.  One  of  the  sheep  dogs  is  shown  in  the  fore- 
ground. 


Fig.  17.  Diagram  of  the  herding  system. 


O 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 
PULLMAN.  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  VETERINARY  SCIENCE 


TUBERCULOSIS . 

A Report  of  the  Results  of  the  Continued 
Injedlions  of  Tuberculin  Upon 
Tubercular  Cattle 

By  S.  B.  NELSON 


BULLETIN  No.  114 
Odlober,  1914 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


D.  S.  TROY,  President Chimacum 

JAS.  C.  CUNNINGHAM,  Vice-President Spokane 

E.  A.  BRYAN,  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

President  of  the  College 

R.  C.  McCROSKEY Garfield 


STATION  STAFF 


IRA  D.  CARDIFF,  Ph.  D 

ELTON  FULMER,  M.  A 

S.  B.  NELSON,  D.  V.  M 

O.  L.  WALLER,  Ph.  M 

A.  L.  MELANDER,  Ph.  D 

O.  M.  MORRIS,  B.  S 

GEO.  W.  SEVERANCE,  B.  S. . . 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S 

A.  B.  NYSTROM,  M.  S 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S. 

W.  T.  SHAW.  B.  Agr.,  M.  S 

J.  G.  HALL,  M.  A 

E.  G.  SCHAFER,  M.  S 

WM.  HYSLOP,  M.  S 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  D.  V.  S 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A 

M.  A.  YOTHERS,  B.  S 

HENRY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S 

C.  F.  MONROE,  B.  S.  A 

C.  B.  SPRAGUE,  B.  S 

D.  C.  GEORGE,  B.  S 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN 

F.  W.  ALLEN,  M.  S 

A.  L.  SHERMAN,  B.  S 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

.Veterinarian 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

. ' Chemist 

Zoologist 

Plant  Pathologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Assistant  Cerealist 

. . . .Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  in  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 


ELLA  W.  BROCK 


Executive  Clerk 


TUBERCULOSIS 


A Report  of  the  Results  of  the  Continued  Injections  of 
Tuberculin  Upon  Tubercular  Cattle 


By  S.  B.  NELSON 

Veterinarian,  Washington  Experiment  Station 


The  treatment  of  tuberculosis  in  riie  human  family  by  the 
subcutaneous  injection  of  tuberculin  has  received  very  consid- 
erable attention  by  the  medical  profession  during  the  past 
decade.  As  to  the  value  of  this  form  of  treatment  there  ap- 
pears to  be  a wide  difference  of  opinion  among  physicians. 
Some  have  given  up  the  use  of  tuberculin  entirely,  believing 
it  to  be  of  negative  value;  while  other  claim  for  it  that,  with 
the  better  knowledge  obtained  through  its  increased  use,  the 
results  are  constantly  better  and  more  encouraging. 

It  was  through  the  observance  of  this  work  in  the  human 
family  that  the  veterinary  department  of  this  station  planned 
a series  of  experiments  to  study  the  effect  of  subcutaneous  in- 
jections of  tuberculin  into  cattle  under  the  conditions  under 
which  they  are  generally  kept;  that  is,  a fairly  well-kept  stable 
in  the  winter  time,  being  outdoors  a part  of  the  day  time,  and 
a run  to  pasture  during  the  summer  months,  being  kept  in  the 
barnyard  at  night  during  this  time. 

The  first  series  of  experiments  were  carried  on  during  the 
year  1900,  and  the  second  series  during  1903-07.  The  first  ex- 
periments were  carried  on  with  Jim,  a four-year-old  Jersey 
bull,  and  Lora,  a three-year-old  grade  Holstein- Jersey  heifer. 
The  object  of  these  experiments  was  to  observe  the  action  on 
these  animals  of  continued  injections  of  tuberculin.  The  action 
of  the  injection  was  to  be  observed  through  the  temperature 
of  the  animals,  their  general  appearance,  and  a study  of  the 
post-mortem  lesions. 

These  two  animals  were  tested  with  the  other  animals  in  the 
herd  March  1,  1900,  giving  the  following  reactions: 


March  1st  and  2d: 


CO  rH 

CO 

••t*  CO 

* 

00 

Co’ 

oo 

rH 

rH 

CO 

rH  rH 

o 

rH  O 

o 

o o 

O 

o 

o o 

' 

O o 

rH  ^ 

rH 

rH  rH 

'i 

rH  r-^- 

tr- 

00 

oa  CO 

CO 

CO 

CO  CO 
CO*  rH 

:d 

■rr 

00 

CO  o 

o o 

o 

o 

1 

o o 

o o 

rH  T— t 

Ph 

r-l 

rH 

Ph' 

rH  rH 

X 

CO  rtf' 

CO 

CO 

CO 

CO  00 

io 

CO  CO 

rd 

rH 

rH 

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Tuberculosis 


5 


The  original  test  of  March  1st  and  2d  was  considered  a 
typical  tuberculin  test,  while  the  three  tests  following  were 
not  so  considered,  even  with  the  injection  of  3 c.  c.  in  the  last 
two.  It  was  nevertheless  decided  to  continue  the  injections  of 
constantly  increasing  doses  ol  tuberculin  as  previously  indi- 
cated. In  both  animals  the  temperature  was  taken  three  times 
daily  during  the  experiment. 

Lora  was  given  the  following  injections: 


June' 10th 2 c.  c.  tuberculin 

June  17th  3 c.  c.  tuberculin 

June  23d  1 c.  c.  tuberculin 

June  27th 5 c.  c.  tuberculin 

July  5th  6 c.  c.  tuberculin 

July  10th  7 c.  c.  tuberculin 

July  14th  8 c.  c.  tuberculin 

July  18th  9 c.  c.  tuberculin 


A study  of  the  temperature  chart  shows  an  observable  dif- 
ference between  the  morning  and  evening  temperatures,  that 
of  the  evening  averaging  0.6  degree  higher  than  the  morning 
one.  The  average  temperature  on  the  day  after  each  injection 
is  generally  lower  than  the  corresponding  average  of  the  day 
before  the  injection.  There  is  very  little  difference  between  the 
average  temperatures  of  the  three  days  immediately  preceding 
and  following  the  injections. 

Lora  was  killed  August  29,  1900.  She  was  in  fairly  good 
flesh  when  killed.  Post-mortem  examination  showed  the 
mediastinal  glands  filled  with  calcified  tubercular  nodules.  The 
caudal  extremity  of  the  left  lung  was  filled  with  a number  of 
small  caseated  tubercles.  No  new  foci  of  infection  were  found. 


Jim  received  injections  as  follows: 

June  lOth 

June  17  th 

June  23d  

June  30th 

July  7th  ; 

July  14th 


2 c.  c.  tuberculin 

3 c.  c.  tuberculin 

4 c.  c.  tuberculin 

5 c.  c.  tuberculin 

6 c.  c.  tuberculin 

7 c.  c.  tuberculin 


6 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


In  Jim’s  case  the  evening  temperature  was  0.4  degree  higher 
than  the  morning  temperature,  0.2  degree  less  difference  than 
was  found  in  Lora.  The  general  temperature  of  Jim  ran  about 
0.5  degree  louver  than  it  did  in  Lora. 

There  is  no  constant  difference  between  the  average  tem- 
perature of  the  day  before  and  the  day  after  the  injection. 
The  same  holds  true  of  the  average  temperature  of  the  tliree  • 
days  immediately  preceding  and  following  the  injection.  The 
average  temperature  of  the  week  after  the  last  injection  is  the 
same  as  that  of  the  week  after  the  first  injection.  Jim  was 
killed  the  same  day  as  Lora.  Post-mortem  lesions  found  were  a 
few  small  caseated  miliary  tubercles  on  the  left  pleural  sur- 
face and  one  on  the  pericardium;  the  animal  Avas  otherwise 
healthy. 

Without  doubt  on  IMarcli  1st,  when  these  two  animals  were 
first  tested,  they  Avere  affected  Avitli  tuberculosis,  possibly  in 
a very  slight  degree,  and  the  lesions  Avere  primary  in  character 
at  that  time.  Probably  after  this  test  the  lesions  began  to  be- 
come caseous,  the  acute  form  of  the  disease  passing  into  a more 
or  less  chronic  form,  a possible  recovery  gradually  taking 
place,  and  therefore  at  the  following  three  tests  a typical  re- 
action was  not  obtained.  Because  of  this  probable  recover^’ 
and  absence  of  the  tubercle  bacillus  the  repeated  injections  of 
the  constantly  increased  doses  of  tuberculin  failed  to  give  any 
appreciable  rise  of  temperature  at  any  time  during  the  experi- 
ment. 

The  next  series  of  experiments  were  planned  along  more 
extensive  lines.  The  animals  experimented  upon  consisted  of 
eight  cows  and  one  bull.  They  were  all  registered  Jerseys, 
Avith  th  exception  of  one  cow,  Avhich  was  a grade  Jersey. 

The  series  included  four  experiments,  as  follows: 

Experiment  1. — Including  cows  Nos.  52  and  53  and  bull  No. 
48.  To  test  the  injection  of  2 c.  c.  of  tuberculin  and  doubling 
the  doses  monthly.  The  temperature  to  be  taken  every  night 
and  morning,  with  the  exception  of  the  day  after  the  injection, 
Avhen  it  is  to  be  taken  every  two  hours. 


Tuberculosis 


7 


Experiment  2. — Including  cows  Nos.  49  and  51.  To  test 
weekly  injections  of  tuberculin,  beginning  with  2 c.  c.  and 
weekly  adding  1 c.  c.  Temperatures  to  be  taken  the  same  as' 
in  Experiment  1. 

Experiment  3. — Including  cows  Noc.  54  and  55.  To  test  the 
injection  of  tuberculin,  beginning  wnth  a weekly  injection  of 
2 c.  c.,  lessening  the  period  one  day  between  each  succeeding 
injection  until  it  becomes  daily,  then  increasing  the  dose  0.5 
c.  c.  daily.  The  temperature  to  be  taken  each  night  and  morn- 
ing, with  the  exception  of  once  weekly,  when  it  is  to  be  takeii 
every  two  hours. 

Experiment4. — Including  co’^’s  Nos.  50  and  56.  To  test  the 
injections  of  tuberculin,  beginning  with  0.5  c.  c.,  continuing  the 
injections  whenever  the  temperature  was  normal,  but  increas- 
ing or  decreasing  each  succeeding  dose  so  as  not  to  increase 
the  temperature ; if  possible  to  prevent  it. 

These  animals  had  been  tested  wi»:h  tuberculin  and  re-acted, 
and  the  owner,  not  v/ishing  to  be  troubled  with  keeping  them 
separated  from  his  other  cattle,  decided  to  send  them  to  the 
experiment  station  for  experimental  purposes.  They  were  ro 
tested  December  9 and  10,  1903,  at  which  time  they  all  gave 
very  typical  reactions.  They  were  placed  in  the  experiments 
December  12,  1903. 

Experiment  No.  1 — Monthly  Doubled  Injections 

In  experiment  No.  1 cow  No.  53  received  the  first  injection, 
of  4 c.  c.,  January  14,  1904,  and  the  last,  of  8 c.  c.,  February 
13th.  She  was  destroyed  March  5th. 

To  both  injections  she  gave  decided  reactions.  For  several 
weeks  prior  to  this  animal’s  death  she  had  been  gradually 
growing  weaker.  She  showed  quite  marked  symptoms  of  en- 
teritis. Great  dullness,  accompanied  at  times  with  exhibitions 
of  pain;  pulse  weak;  respirations  rapid  and  catching;  appetite, 
however,  fairly  good,  but  not  regular.  On  the  28th  of  Febru- 
ary she,  with  others,  had  been  turned  out  to  pasture.  The 
weather  became  rainy  and  cold,  and  this  animal  was  so  caiiied 
and  exhausted  that  she  could  not  return  to  the  stable  that 


8 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


evening,  but  was  hauled  in  early  the  following  morning. 

March  5th  she  was  so  weak  that  it  was  deemed  best  to  de- 
stroy her.  Post-mortem  held  immediately: 

Lungs  normal  except  a few  lesions  of  lobular  pneumonia. 

In  the  intestines  were  t'ound  sevc.ral  tubercular  ulcers,  some 
of  them  penetrating  the  jejunum. 

About  ten  of  the  mesenteric  lynrpn-glands  were  tubercular 
^nd  quite  calcareous.  The  lymph-glands  in  general  showed 
evidence  of  great  emaciation,  being  deeeply  pigmented  and 
watery  in  the  center. 

The  peritoneum  on  the  left  side  was  normal,  but  on  the  right 
side  it  showed  marked  chronic  peritonitis.  The  membrane  was 
4 cm.  thick  in  many  places,  and  liquefactive  necrosis  was  in 
progress.  The  peritoneal  cavity  contained  about  four  liters  of 
foul-smelling  liquid. 

Cow  No.  52  received  her  first  injection,  of  4 c.  c.,  on  January 
14,  1904,  and  the  last,  of  2048  c.  c.,  on  November  25,  1904.  She 
died  April  10,  1905,  being  found  dead  in  her  stanchion  after 
she  had  eaten  a feed  of  green  grass. 

She  was  greatly  bloated,  and  her  death  was  in  all  probability 
due  to  tympanites.  She  was  in  fairly  good  condition  and  had 
a thrifty  appearance.  The  lungs  contained  a few  old  tuber- 
cular foci.  The  post-pharyngeal,  bronchial,  anterior  and 
posterior  mediastinal  glands  were  tubercular  and  were  passing 
into  the  stage  of  calcification.  All  other  tissues  and  glands 
were  normal. 

The  bull  No.  48  received  tuberculin  injections  the  same  as 
cow  No.  52,  but  because  of  his  vicious  temper  it  was  deemed 
advisable  not  to  try  to  take  his  temperature,  as  was  done  with 
the  cows.  There  is  therefore  no  temperature  record  in  his  case. 

This  animal  was  in  good  condition  when  he  was  put  into 
the  experiment.  He  had  absolutely  no  physical  symptoms  of 
tuberculosis.  He  was  given  a shed  suall  and  paddock  to  run 
in  and  was  well  fed  during  the  entire  experiment. 

In  October,  1904,  he  began  to  show  external  symptoms,  such 
as  lameness,  swelling  of  the  shoulder-joints,  rough,  staring 


Tuberculosis 


9 


coat,  occasional  diarrhea.  From  this  time  on  he  failed  rather 
rapidly,  and  when  he  was  killed,  September  19,  1905.  he  was 
unable  to  get  to  his  feet  when  down.  Post-mortem  lesions. 

In  general  ante-mortem  appearance  the  animal  was  very 
eemaciated,  the  skin  was  rough,  and  the  coat  stary.  Post- 
pharyngeal lymphatics  were  greatly  enlarged,  tubercular,  and 
calcareous.  The  left  axillary  and  pre  scapular  glands  were 
tuberculous,  as  were  the  small  supernumerary  glands  of  the 
anterior  mediastinum.  The  portal  lymphatic  was  tuberculous. 
Several  of  the  small  gastric  and  nearly  the  entire  chain  of 
mesenteric  glands  were  also  tubercular. 

The  bronchial  and  mediastinal  glands  were  extensively  dis- 
eased. 

Nearly  all  parts  of  the  lungs  contained  tubercular  foci. 
Neither  the  pleura  nor  the  pericardium  was  involved. 

In  the  liver  were  a number  of  quite  large  tuberculous  nodules. 

The  intestines  contained  ulcers,  evidently  tubercular  in 
character. 

One  nodule  was  found  on  the  left  kidney. 

No.  52  gave  reaction  to  the  following  injections: 


Jan  14,  1904,  4 c,  c 102.7  105.3  105.4  105.1  105.5 

Feb.  13,  1904,  8 c.  c 102.3  104  104.2  103.7  102.9 


March  13,  1904,  16  c.  c 103.5  103  102.8  102.4  102.1 

April  14,  1904,  32  c.  c 101.4  102.1  102.2  102  101.6 

Figures  indicate  degrees. 

The  April  record  would  hardly  be  considered  a reaction,  and 
none  occurred  after  that  date. 

It  is  rather  interesting  to  note  that  during  the  early  part  of 
the  experiment  the  morning  temperature  of  both  Nos.  52  and 
53  was  higher  than  the  evening  one.  In  No.  52  this  was  true 
during  the  first  six  months,  or  up  to  the  time  she  had  received 
32  c.  c.  of  tuberculin  at  that  injection.  From  that  time  until 
the  last  injection,  of  2048  c.  c.,  the  temperature  in  the  evening 
averaged  higher  than  in  the  morning.  During  the  last  four 
months  her  temperature  ran  more  irregularly.  It  would  some- 
times go  to  103  to  104  degrees  for  a day  and  then  drop  to  99 
to  100  degrees. 


10 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


The  evidence  in  these  three  experimonts  tends  to  show  that 
in  Nos.  53  and  48  the  results  were  negative,  while  in  No.  52  the 
injection  may  possibly  have  had  beneficial  action. 

Experiment  No.  2 — Weekly  Injections  Adding  1 c.  c. 

In  experiment  No.  2 cow  No.  49  received  her  first  injection, 
of  2 c.  c.,  on  January  3,  1904,  and  her  last  injection,  of  16  c.  c., 
April  17th  of  the  same  year. 

She  gave  a reaction  of  103  degrees  to  every  injection.  She 
was  very  poorly  nourished,  hair  rough  and  staring,  mucous 
membranes  anemic,  pulse  and  respirations  rapid. 

Post-mortem  lesions  found  were : 

Anterior  middle  lobe  of  right  lung  completely  solidified  and 
filled  Avith  tubercles  varying  in  size  from  one  to  five  em.- 
LoAver  tAvo-thirds  of  posterior  lobe  also  filled  with  tubercles. 
In  the  left  lung  Avere  found  the  same  conditions  as  in  the  right, 
except  to  a less  degree.  The  tubercular  foci  Avere  nearl}^  all 
calcareous. 

The  udder  contained  tubercular  foci  that  had  undergone  cal- 
cification. 

On  the  surface  of  the  omasum  there  was  one  tubercle  about 
1 cm.  in  diameter,  filled  with  calcareous  material. 

The  external  inguinal,  superior  mammary,  mesenteric,  por- 
tal, and  bronchial  glands  were  all  affected,  the  latter  being 
greatly  enlarged  and  calcareous.  The  anterior  and  posterior 
mediastinal  glands  Avere  also  affected. 

CoAV  No.  51  AA^as  alwa3^s  in  good  flesh  and  condition  up  ta 
the  time  she  Avas  destroyed,  July  8,  1907.  A very  careful  ex- 
amination gaA^e  no  macroscopical  evidence  of  any  lesions  of 
tuberculosis,  Avhich  makes  this  case  a very  interesting  one.  The 
folloAving  preliminary  tuberculin  te.st  Avas  considered  a char- 
acteristic one: 

A.  M.  P.  M. 

6 8 10  12  4 6 10 

Dec.  9,  1903.. 97.1  98.4  101.3  101.6 

Dec.  10,  1903.100.5  102  103  104.3*  104.5  103.2  


Figures  indicate  degrees. 


Tuberculosis 


11 


• From  January  3,  1904,  when  she  was  injected  2 c.  c.  of  cuber- 
culin,  until  June  13,  1901,  when  the  injection  had  been  in- 
creased to  25  c.  c.,  she  gave  rather  irregular  and  indefinite 
temperature  reactions.  From  June  13  to  Deecmber  26,  1904, 
with  a gradual  increase  in  the  injections  to  48  c.  c.,  her  tem- 
perature at  no  time  went  above  102.8  degrees,  giving  no  re- 
action. From  January  7,  1905,  to  January  1,  1907,  when  she 
received  150  c.  c.  of  tuberculin,  she  gave  quite  characteristic  . 
reactions. 


A.M. 

P. 

M. 

8 

10 

12 

2 

4 

Jan.  14, 

1905,  51 

c.  c 

..102.5 

103.7 

104.2 

104.1 

104.8 

Feb.  10, 

1905,  55 

c 

..100.2 

102  2 

103.3 

103.4 

102.6 

Feb.  25, 

1905,  57 

c.  c. . . . 

. .101.6 

102.7 

102.6 

105.6 

105 

March  18,  1905,  ( 

30  c.  c..  , 

. . 101 

101.5 

102.8 

105 

105.7 

May  26, 

1905,  70 

c.  c. . . . 

. .101.3 

102.4 

102.8 

103.8 

103.6 

Figures  indicate  degrees. 


These,  I think,  are  fair  examples  of  how  the  weekly  tests 
ran.  Some  ran  higher  and  some  lower  than  these.  From 
January  1,  1907,  to  May  28,  1907,  there  was  no  reaction  what- 
ever to  any  of  the  injections. 

It  is  probable  that  this  cow'  had  tuberculosis  to  a very  slight 
extent  when  she  was  first  tested,  and  recovered  by  June  13, 
1904,  to  become  reaffected  by  January,  1905,  because  of  her 
confinement  with  the  other  tubercular  cattle  during  the  earlier 
winter  months,  and  again  recovering  by  January,  1907;  and 
yet  we  were  not  able  to  find  any  traces  of  pathological  lesions. 
Is  it  possible  that  the  disease  could  exist  to  a sufficient  extent 
to  give  the  temperature  reactions  and  yet  not  form  the  usual 
lesions  because  of  the  large  amounts  of  tuberculin  continually 
kept  in  the  animal’s  body?  Or  was  the  reaction  an  error  the 
greater  part  of  the  time? 

It  seems  most  reasonable  to  believe  that  the  animal  subjected 
to  continual  exposure  by  being  kept  in  the  stable  in  close  con- 
tact with  the  other  extensively  diseased  animals  was  continu- 
ally being  infected,  and  the  large  doses  of  tuberculin  prevented 
the  development  of  the  pathological  lesions. 


12 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


In  this  experiment  with  these  two  cows  the  temperature 
shows  entirely  opposite  conditions  as  to  the  relation  between 
the  morning  and  evening  temperatures.  In  No.  49  the  morning 
tem})erature.  with  the  exception  of  just  a few  mornings,  ex- 
ceeded tl;e  evening  temperature.  This  is  rather  unusual  in 
this  disease.  While  in  No.  51  there  ^ras  marked  exaeerbaiion 
of  the  evening  temperature. 

• The  injection  of  the  tuberculin  as  carried  on  in  this  experi- 
ment may  have  had  therapeulic  value  in  both  of  these  animals. 
In  No.  49  the  lesions  were  to  a marked  extent  calcified,  show- 
ing that  a strong  recuperative  force  was  present.  In  No.  51,  if 
it  Avas  of  value,  it  Avas  probably  prophylactic  in  character. 

Experiment  No.  3 — Daily  Injections 

In  experiment  No.  8 coavs  Nos.  54  and  55  received-their  first 
injections,  of  2 c.  c.,  on  January  3,  1904,  and  the  last  one,  of 
48  c.  c.,  on  June  13,  1904. 

No.  55  Avas  -killed  June  15,  1904.  She  Avas  so  Aveak  and  ema- 
ciated that  it  Avas  thought  adAusable  to  kill  her.  She  had  been 
suffering  from  diarrhea  for  about  a month,  \Adiich  at  times  Avas 
so  seA^ere  that  the  feces  were  smeared  Avith  coagulated  blood. 

Post-mortem  lesions  found  immediately  after  death  Avere 
that  the  limgs  contained  a fcAV  tubercular  lesions ; here  and 
there  on  the  pleura  Avere  a feAv  pearly  tubercles;  the  bronchial 
lymph  glands  were  greatly  enlarged  and  contained  calcareous 
nodules  in  large  numbers;  the  posterior  mediastinal  gland  Avas 
also  much  enlarged  and  extensively  affected;  the  intestines 
shoAved  enteritis,  but  no  definite  tubercular  lesions;  all  other 
organs  AA^ere  apparently  healthy. 

CoAv  No.  54  was  killed  July  7,  1907.  This  animal  vvas  in  a 
thrifty  condition,  as  Avas  evidenced  by  the  flesh  she  Avas  in 
and  by  the  appearance  of  her  coat.  She  Avas  suffering  from  a 
slight  leukorrhea,  due  to  local  vaginitis. 

Post-mortem  lesions  found  Avere  tubercular  lungs,  pleura,  in- 
testines, liver  and  lymphatics.  The  anterior  and  inferior  lobes 
of  the  right  lung  contained  many  tubercles,  and  the  diaphragm 
was  covered  Avith  quite  a number  of  them  over  the  affected 


Tuberculosis 


13 


part  of  the  lung.  The  small  intestines  contained  in  their  wall 
a number  of  calcified  abscesses.  The  same  was  true  oC  the 
liver,  where  there  were  fifteen  or  twenty  calcified  tuoercles  on 
its  surface.  All  of  the  lymphatics  had  calcified  tubercular 
lesions  in  them. 

In  both  of  these  cows  the  temperature  chart  showed  that 
from  the  beginning  of  the  experiment  to  the  time  the  injec- 
tions were  discontinued  the  temperatures  ran  very  irregularly. 
There  was  no  definite  relation  betwv^en  the  morning  and  even- 
ing temperature.' 

During  the  first  month  of  the  experiment,  that  is,  up  to  the. 
date  that  7 c.  c.  were  injected,  the  weekly  two-hour  temper- 
ature record  shows  reaction  to  the  injection.  At  no  time  alter 
that  is  there  any  indication  of  any  reaction,  except  that  on 
June  4th,  after  the  injection  ol  43.5  e.  c.,  both  animals  showed 
a rise  in  temperature.  From  June  13ih,  1904,  to  May,  1907, 
No.  54  ran  quite  a regular  w^eekly  temperature — practically  the 
normal  temperature  of  a healthy  cow. 

In  both  of  these  cows  the  lesions  w^ere  old  and  calcareous. 
No  fresh  centers  of  infection  were  found  in  either  one  of  them,, 
although  in  No.  55  the  enteritis,  diarrhea,  and  high  tempera- 
ture during  the  last  three  weeks  might  have  indicated 
enteric  tuberculosis. 

The  cessation  of  reaction  seemed  to  show  that  the  injections 
had  had  positive  influence  on  the  disease,  or  that  the  large 
daily  injections  had  so  filled  the  animal’s  body  with  tuberculin 
that  reaction  from  the  next  injection  was  impossible;  but  the 
additional  evidence  of  the  chronic  lesions  found  w^ould  point 
toward  the  positive  influence  of  the  injections  in  this  experi- 
ment. 


Experiment  No.  4 — Small  Fluctuating  Injections 

Cow  No.  50  Avas  in  very  good  flesh  up  to  within  three  months 
before  she  died,  July  21,  1905.  This  breakdown  in  condition 
began  soon  after  she  calved,  March  9,  1905. 

Post-mortem  lesions:  The  lungs  were  extensively  affected, 
shownng  many  foci  involving  large  areas.  There  were  also 


14 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


countless  numbers  of  miliary  tubercles  indicating- either  that 
the  old  local  lesions  had  given  rise  to  generalized  tuberculosis 
or  that  she  had  become  re-infected.  The  indications  are  that 
it  was  from  the  former,  as  all  the  organs  and  glands,  lungs, 
liver,  spleen,  diaphragm,  mesentery,  uterus,  and  udder,  were 
all  extensively  affected,  as  well  as  the  lymphatic  glands.  The 
posterior  mediastinal  was  about  25  cm.  in  length.  This  was 
one  of  the  severest  cases  of  generalized  tuberculosis  that  has 
come  under  our  observation. 

Until  in  February,  1905,  she  did  not  give  any  appreciable  re- 
action to  the  injection  of  small  doses,  but  subsequent  to  this 
'time,  with  double  the  amount  of  tuberculin,  she  would  continu 
ally  run  to  104  to  106  degrees.  On  April  11th  she  showed  an 
evening  temperature  of  104.7  degrees.  This  was  the  beginning 
of  her  very  high  evening  temperatures.  At  first,  from  April 
11th  to  May  11th,  this  high  temperature  only  occurred  weekly, 
but  from  May  11th  to  the  day  she  died  her  evening  temperature 
was  constantly  very  high. 

CoAv  No.  56  had  for  some  little  time  been  quite  poor  in  flesh, 
and  just  before  her  death  she  was  extremely  emaciated. 

Post-mortem:  On  the  right  side  of  the  neck,  between  the 
skin  and  fascia,  there  was  a small  tubercular  nodule.  The  lungs 
were  extremely  tubercular.  They  contained  in  some  places 
broken  down  areas  with  cavity  formation  containing  broken 
down  tissue  and  pus.  The  entire  chain  of  lymphatics  was  dis- 
eased. The  small  intestines,  especially  the  ileum,  contained 
tubercular  ulcers.  The  liver,  spleen,  pleura,  pericardium,  and 
udder  were  apparently  healthy. 

This  animal  showed  from  the  first  of  the  experiment  an  in- 
creased evening  temperature,  but  after  May  10,  1905,  she  (con- 
stantly presented  an  increasingly  high  evening  temperature, 
although  her  morning  temperatures  were  nearly  always  normal. 
During  the  last  three  days  that  she  was  alive  her  temperature 
was  sulinorma],  at  no  time  reaching  99  degrees. 

In  this  experiment  of  using  small  doses  of  tuberculin  the 
original  plan  was  slightly  deviated  Irom  ,m  that  toward  the^ 
end  of  the  experiment  tlu'  dose  of  tuberculin  injected  wasj 


Tuberculosis 


15 


kept  at  2 c.  c.  nearly  all  of  the  time,  and  each  injection  resulted 
in  a rise  of  temperature,  when  the  dose  should  have  been  so 
varied  as  to  have  prevented  the  rise  of  temperature,  if  possible. 

In  both  of  these  animals  the  weekly  injections  of  what  is 
considered  a normal  dose  of  tuberculin  constantly  gave  a 
typical  reaction.  The  rise  of  temperature,  however,  began  very 
soon  after  the  injection,  reaching  its  maximum  in  six  to  eight 
hours,  instead  of  waiting  six  to  eight  hours  before  beginning 
to  rise,  and  then  not  reaching  its  maximum  before  fourteen  to 
eighteen  hours; 

In  these  advanced  cases  of  tuberculosis  small  continued  doses 
of  tuberculin  did  not  exhibit  any  positive  therapeutic  value. 

CONCLUSIONS 

1.  The  injection  into  tubercular  cattle  of  large  monthly  or 
small  weekly  doses  of  tuberculin  does  not  apparently  have 
therapeutic  value. 

2.  The  injection  of  constantly  increased^  daily  or  weekly 
doses  of  tuberculin  apparently  does  have  therapeutic  value. 

3.  The  evening  temperature  is  usually  higher  than  the  morn- 
ing temperature  in  tubercular  cows. 

4.  The  oftener  tuberculin  injections  are  made  into  tubercular 
cattle,  the  sooner  the  temperature  reaction  begins  and  the 
sooner  the  zenith  is  reached. 


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STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  BOTANY 


Studies  on  the  Relation  of  Certain  Species 
of  Fusarium  to  the  Tomato  Blight 
of  the  Pacific  Northwest 

By 

H.  B.  HUMPHREY 


BULLETIN  NO.  115 
October,  1914 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


D.  S.  TROY,  President Chimacum 

JAS.  C CUNNINGHAM,  Vice  President  Spokane 

E.  A.  BRYAN,  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

President  of  the  College 

R.  C.  McCROSKEY Garfield 


STATION  STAFF 


IRA  D.  CARDIFF,  Ph.  D ..Director  and  Botanist 

ELTON  FULMER,  M.  A State  Chemist 

S.  B.  NELSON,  D.  V.  M ..Veterinarian 

O.  L.  WALLER,  Ph.  M Irrigation  Engineer 

A.  L.  MELANDER,  Sc.  D ....Entomologist 

O.  M.  MORRIS,  B.  S .Horticulturist 

GEO.  SEVERANCE,  B.  S Agriculturist 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S.  ..Soil  Physicist 

A.  B.  NYSTROM,  M.  S.  Dairy  Husbandman 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S Chemist 

W.  T.  SHAW,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S Zoologist 

J.  G.  HALL,  M.  A Plant  Pathologist 

E.  G.  SCHAFER,  M.  S Agronomist 

WM.  HISLOP,  M.  S Animal  Husbandman 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  D.  V.  S Assistant  Veterinarian 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A Assistant  Bacteriologist 

M.  A.  YOTHERS,  B.  S Assistant  Entomologist 

HENRY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S ..Assistant  Cerealist 

C.  F.  MONROE,  B.  S.  A Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 


C.  B.  SPRAGUE,  B.  S. . 

D.  C.  GEORGE,  B.  S.  . 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN 

F.  W.  ALLEN,  M.  S.  .. 
A.  L.  SHERMAN,  B.  S, 
ELLA  W.  BROCK 


Assistant  in  Horticulture 

.Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
.Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

Executive  Clerk 


STUDIES  ON  THE  RELATION  OF  CERTAIN  SPECIES 
OF  FUSARIUM  TO  THE  TOMATO  BLIGHT 
OF  THE  PACIFIC  NORTHWEST 

Bp  H.  B.  HUMPHREY,^  Ph.D.,  Plant  Pathologist 


INTRODUCTION 

Certain  of  the  Solanaceae  are  peculiarly  susceptible  to  diseases  of 
the  roots  or  other  subterranean  organs ; and  foremost  among  these  may 
be  placed  the  tomato  and  potato.  Often,  as  for  example,  in  the  dry 
end  rot  of  the  potato  and  the  so-called  Southern  tomato  blight  described 
by  Smith^  as  occurring  in  California,  two  or  more  diseases  may  be 
induced  by  one  and  the  same  organism.  Particularly  is  this  true  when 
the  causative  organism  is  a species  of  Fusarium. 

The  tomato  blight  of  the  Pacific  Northwest  referred  to  through- 
out this  Bulletin  as  the  Yellow  Blight  of  the  tomato,  is  due  primarily 
to  root-destroying  fungi,  and  should  not  be  confused  with  the  disease 
known  as  Sleepy  Sickness,  so  prevalent  throughout  certain  of  the  Cen- 
tral and  Southern  States.  Geographically,  it  appears  to  be  confined  to 
the  Pacific  Northwest;  and  even  here  is  most  epidemic  and  virulent  in 
those  localities  where  high  July  and  August  temperatures  prevail.  For 
example:  Tomatoes  grown  from  the  same  variety  and  lot  of  seed,  but 
transplanted  part  in  the  soil  of  the  Snake  River  bottom  land  and  the 
remainder  near  Pullman,  Washington,  may  blight  severely  in  the  former 
situation  and  not  at  all  or  but  little  at  the  higher,  and  noticeably  cooler 
elevation.  A like  difference  in  severity  obtains  when  we  compare  notes 
relative  to  prevalence  of  the  disease  in  the  Yakima  Valley  and  the  coun- 
try about  Pullman. 

Tomato-growing  in  the  valleys  of  the  Snake,  Columbia,  and 
Yakima  Rivers  constitutes  an  important  source  of  income,  notwith- 
standing the  fact  that  in  years  of  severe  blight  the  loss  may  average 
in  some  localities  as  much  as  30  to  50%  of  the  total  crop.  The  re- 
currence of  severe  blight  epidemics  from  year  to  year  led  the  Wash- 
ington State  Experiment  Station  in  1896  to  undertake  an  investigation 
of  the  disease,  its  cause  or  causes,  and  possible  means  of  control. 


^Resigned  March,  WiJ. 

tSmlth,  R.  E.  1906.  Tomato  Diseases  in  California.  Bull.  1 75  Cal.  Agr.  Exp.  Sla. 


2 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


HISTORY 

From  1896  to  1902  the  project  was  in  charge  of  C.  V.  Piper, 
then  Botanist  of  the  Washington  State  Experiment  Station.  Piper’s 
notes  indicate  his  belief  at  that  time  in  a bacterial  causation  of  the 
disease,  and  he  isolated  several  pure  cultures  of  bacteria  from  diseased 
plants.  In  one  series  of  inoculation  experiments  with  one  of  these 
organisms  several  of  the  treated  plants  acquired  all  the  symptoms  of 
the  blight,  but  in  subsequent  attempts  to  produce  the  disease  with  the 
same  specific  organism  the  results  were  purely  negative.  The  data 
were  never  published. 

Piper  also  tested  a large  number  of  tomato  varieties  in  the  Yakima 
Valley  with  a view  to  discovering  a blight  resistant  strain.  These 
showed  a wide  variation  in  susceptibility  to  the  disease,  but  all  varieties 
tested  suffered  a considerable  percentage  of  blighted  plants. 

Following  Piper,  his  successor,  R.  Kent  Beattie,  assisted  by  N. 
R.  Hunt,  continued  along  lines  of  investigation  of  a somewhat  more 
comprehensive  character.  They  made  continued  and  frequent  unsuc- 
cessful attempts  to  recover  from  diseased  foliage  and  shoots  the  sus- 
pected parasite,  apparently  adhering  to  the  theory  of  a bacterial  origin 
of  the  disease.  Carefully  conducted  field  studies  were  made  during 
the  summer  of  1907  with  a view  to  ascertaining  the  nature  and  extent 
of  the  influence  of  environmental  conditions.  During  the  same  season 
observations  were  also  made  with  reference  to  the  relative  resistance 
capacities  of  different  standard  varieties^. 

In  1 909  the  project  was  assigned  to  the  writer.  Although  there 
still  remain  many  points  of  interest  needing  further  study,  it  may  be 
assumed  that  the  investigation  has  advanced  sufficiently  to  warrant  the 
publication  of  such  data  as  have  been  recorded  during  the  past  five 
years. 

Distribution  of  the  Yellow  Blight 

As  stated  on  another  page,  the  yellow  blight  of  the  tomato  is  most 
general  and  destructive  in  those  parts  of  the  Pacific  Northwest  subject 
to  prolonged  periods  of  high  summer  temperature.  It  seems  also  to 
be  a fact  that  light,  quickly  heated  soils,  other  factors  aside,  afford  a 
more  favorable  environment  for  the  incubation  of  the  causative  organ- 
isms than  is  true  of  the  heavier,  more  compact  soils  which  are  less  readily 
aerated  and  more  slowly  heated. 

The  disease  known  as  “Summer  Blight,’’  common  throughout  the 
larger  agricultural  valleys  of  California  and  described  by  Smith^,  ’06, 
is  probably  not  identical  with  the  disease  described  in  this  bulletin. 


*The  results  of  these  studies  will  be  incorporated  in  a subsequent  bulletin  dealing 
with  the  subject  of  Breeding  and  Selection  for  Disease  Resistance  in  Tomatoes. 
*Smith,  R.  E.  Tomato  Diseases  in  California.  Bulletin  175,  Jan.  1906. 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


3 


although  the  seat  of  fungus  growth  and  activity  is  confined  to  the  same 
part  of  the  host  plant,  namely,  the  root  system.  To  the  writer’s  knowl- 
edge, the  occurrence  of  yellow  blight  has  not  been  reported  from  any 
state  east  or  south  of  Oregon,  Washington,  and  Idaho. 

SYMPTOMATOLOGY 

During  the  incipient  stages  of  the  disease,  the  host,  while  producing 
its  first  flowers,  or  in  many  instances,  after  its  fruit  is  a third  or  half- 
grown,  begins  to  show  first  symptoms;  i.  e.,  a slight  torsion  of  the  entire 
leaf  accompanied  by  a purpling  of  the  leaf  veins.  With  the  general 
torsion  of  the  leaves,  one  may  also  observe  a twisting  and  rolling  in- 
ward followed  by  drooping  (not  wilt)  of  the  leaflets  and  leaves.  The 
lower  leaves  of  field-grown  plants  are  not  necessarily  the  first  to  become 
yellow.  They  not  infrequently  remain  green  for  several  days  after 
leaves  of  subsequent  growth  have  begun  to  fade  and  die.  Even  in 
the  latest  stages  of  the  disease  the  foliage  does  not  wilt,  but  seems  to 
become  brittle,  at  first  taking  on  a glaucous  sheen  which  from  a dis- 
tance gives  the  afflicted  plant  a greyish  appearance.  Immature  toma- 
toes, one-half  inch  or  less  in  diameter,  become  yellow  and  ultimately 
take  on  a depth  of  color  indicative  of  ripeness.  The  pulp  of  these  toma- 
toes is  quite  agreeable  to  the  taste,  though  it- lacks  the  aroma  and  pal- 
atable flavor  of  a fully  matured  and  properly  ripened  tomato.  The 
seeds  of  these  small  fruits  fail  to  develop.  With  the  onset  of  the  blight 
there  is  a marked  cessation  of  growth,  and  all  affected  plants  assume 
an  erect  habit,  excepting  those  cases  in  which  the  invasion  of  the  root 
system  occurs  late  in  the  season  after  the  host  has  borne  heavily  and 
has  become  prone  from  heavy  fruitage. 

Plants  suffering  from  the  yellow  blight,  but  grown  under  condi- 
tions which  obtain  in  the  average  greenhouse,  do  not  present  in  anything 
like  so  striking  a degree  the  symptoms  manifested  by  plants  of  the 
same  variety  when  grown  in  the  field.  Our  studies  have  progressed  suf- 
ficiently to  justify  the  opinion  that  such  factors  as  soil  temperature  and 
moisture,  wind  movement,  air  temperature,  and  light  intensity  are  the 
controlling  factors  in  this  disease.  In  our  greenhouse  experiments  we 
have  been  able  to  produce  yellow  blight,  but  never  have  these  experi- 
ments yielded  blighting  plants  which  would  present  the  same  symtom- 
atic  complex  as  those  grown  under  out-door  conditions.  And  there  is 
no  reason  why  they  should ; the  soil  temperature  in  the  greenhouses 
where  our  experiments  were  conducted  was  rarely  if  ever  as  high  as 
the  optimum  temperature  (86°  F.)  of  the  causative  organisms.  Hence, 
fungous  growth  within  the  roots  was  more  or  less  inhibited.  It  must  also 
be  patent  enough  that  growth  conditions  affecting  the  host  when  grown 
in  a greenhouse  are  so  nearly  ideal  as  to  afford  it  a far  better  fighting 
chance  against  invading  fungi. 

Infected  plants  maintained  in  the  greenhouse  manifest  the  first 
signs  of  blight  in  the  twisting  of  leaves  and  leaflets  and  by  their  light- 


4 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


ened  color  and  the  characteristic  purpling  of  the  veins.  The  whole 
plant  lags  in  growth,  assumes  a spindling  habit,  and  produces  very  in- 
ferior fruit.  An  examination  of  the  root-system  of  such  a plant  will 
reveal  the  fact  that  many  of  the  roots  and  their  branches,  especially  at 
their  tips  are  decayed.  The  entire  root-system,  instead  of  presenting  the 
ivory-whiteness  of  healthy  tomato  roots,  has  become  discolored  to  a 
light  bufF  or  darker  hue.  In  those  roots  most  severely  diseased  the 
cortical  tissue,  if  not  already  gone,  m.ay  be  easily  slipped  off  between 
finger  and  thumb,  leaving  behind  the  m.ore  resistant  vascular,  woody 
tissue.  If  we  compare  the  root-system  of  such  a plant,  artificially  inocu- 
lated and  grown  in  sterile  soil,  with  that  of  a diseased  plant  grown  in 
the  field  we  shall  find  the  two  all  but  identical  as  to  color,  lesions,  and 
manner  of  advance  of  the  fungus  within  the  roots. 

Field  Studies 

Plate  III,  fig.  3,  represents  the  appearance  of  a field  in  which 
many  of  the  tomato  plants  had  already  succumbed  to  the  blight.  It 
will  be  seen  from  the  figure  that  the  disease  does  not  uniformly  affect 
all  the  plants  in  a row,  but  at  first  claims  a host  only  here  and  there 
throughout  the  field,  becoming  more  widespread  and  destructive  as  the 
season  advances. 

Failure  to  recover  a causative  organism  from  the  aerial  organs  of 
diseased  plants  led  us  to  make  a more  comprehensive  study  of  their  root 
systems.  In  order  to  determine  whether  or  not  a definite  and  consistent 
correlation  obtained  in  the  condition  of  the  roots  and  the  parts  above 
ground  it  was  necessary  to  remove  the  plants  from  the  soil  by  hydraulic 
pressure.  In  this  manner  the  entire  plant  could  be  washed  out  with  but 
little  injury  to  any  part  of  the  root  system.  And  thus  we  were  enabled 
to  determine  approximately  the  extent  of  damage  suffered  by  different 
plants  in  varying  stages  of  disease.  This  investigation  of  the  roots  was 
extended  to  include  plants  manifesting  every  degree  of  health,  not  ex- 
cepting those  showing  no  external  symptoms  of  any  diseases,  whatever. 
Moreover,  the  work  of  washing  out  these  plants  was  not  confined  to  a 
single  season,  nor  to  one  locality,  but  covered  three  seasons  and  included 
plants  growing  in  such  diverse  soil  conditions  as  obtain  in  the  sandy  loam 
of  the  Snake  River  bottom  land,  the  basaltic  soil  near  Pullman,  Wash- 
ington, and  the  porous,  gravel  drift  of  the  Spokane  Prairie.  Upwards 
of  two  hundred  individual  plants  were  thus  studied  and  careful  notes 
made  with  reference  to  condition  of  parts  above  and  below  ground, 
with  the  result  that,  regardless  of  the  character  of  the  soil  or  variety  of 
tomato,  there  was  found  to  exist  in  every  case  a striking  correlation 
between  the  diseased  condition  of  the  roots  and  the  symptoms  of  dis- 
ease shown  in  the  foliage.  To  illustrate  the  degree  of  this  correlation 
the  following  excerpt  from  notes  made  in  1910  is  here  inserted: 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


5 


No  of 

Plant  Date 
1 6 July  25 


Condition  of  Foliage 

First  symptoms  very  pro- 
nounced: leaves  and  leaflets 
show  characteristic  torsion ; 
veinage  purple ; a few  leaves 
becoming  yellow. 


Condition  of  Root  System 

Root  system  of  9 primary 
branches.  Three  of  these 
diseased  from  a point  where 
diam.eter  is  1 mm.  Many 
small  roots  near  surface  de- 
stroyed. Small  laterals  o r 
“feeders  ’ of  the  three  dis- 
eased primary  roots  wholly 
destroyed. 


l?a 


July  25 


Yellow. 


Nearly  a 1 1 small  branches 
and  feeders  destroyed. 


17 


10 


July  25 


Badly  blighted.  In  late 
stages:  leaves  all  yellow  or 
dying.  Plant  stunted. 


All  but  one  large  root  de- 
stroyed to  within  twelve 
inches  of  base  of  plant  stem. 
Smaller  branches  all  gone 
except  those  of  the  one  re- 
maining primary;  and  many 
of  these  are  rotting. 


Aug.  8 Diseased.  In  late  stages: 

leaves  yellow,  twisted  and 
brittle. 


Of  20  primary  roots,  1 1 are 
decayed  from  points  vary- 
ing from  Yi  inch  to  1 2 
inches  from  point  of  origin. 
Two  of  the  remaining  9 
primary  roots  were  divided 
into  3 secondary  branches. 
Showed  no  signs  of  decay 
as  far  out  as  uncovered  (3 
feet).  Som.e  small  lateral 
branches  of  remaining  seven 
primaries  show  decay. 


12 


Aug.  8 First  unmistakable  symptoms 
leaf  torsion  and  general  dull- 
ing of  color  of  foliage. 
Habit,  rigid. 


Out  of  a total  of  28  large 
roots,  6 were  infected  at 
from  12  to  36  inches  of 
point  of  origin.  Several  root- 
lets destroyed. 


The  above  tabulation  of  notes  taken  in  the  field  at  the  time  the 
plants  were  washed  out  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  uniformity  of  rela- 
t.onship  existing  between  the  conditions  obtaining  in  aerial  and  under- 
ground parts  of  individual  plants. 


6 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


Laboratory  and  Greenhouse  Studies 

Microscopic  examination  of  living  diseased  roots  revealed  in  every 
instance  the  hyphae  of  fungi  confined  at  first  to  the  cortical  tissue,  but 
subsequently  extending  to  the  phloem  and  xylem  of  the  vascular  tract. 
The  discovery  of  these  organisms  in  the  root  afforded  a basis  for  further 
field  and  laboratory  study  the  results  of  which,  while  they  in  no  sense 
represent  the  last  word  on  the  subject  of  the  yellow  blight,  may  at 
least,  be  regarded  as  pointing  the  way. 

During  the  summer  of  1910  plate  cultures  of  a considerable  num- 
ber of  plants  in  various  stages  of  blight  were  made  in  accordance  with 
the  following  technique:  The  roots  after  being  thoroughly  washed  and 
freed  from  clinging  soil  were  placed  in  a flask  containing  a 1-1000  solu- 
tion of  mercuric  chloride.  After  standing  five  to  ten  minutes  in  this  solu- 
tion they  were  washed  in  three  changes  of  autoclaved  water.  They 
were  next  removed  from  the  flask  by  means  of  flamed  forceps  and  re- 
duced to  a finely  divided  pulp  by  running  them  over  a close-meshed, 
sterilized  sieve  used  as  a grater.  This  root  pulp  was  then  placed  in  a 
flask  of  autoclaved  water  and  dilutions  were  made  from  the  mixture. 
From  these  dilutions  were  made  the  plate  cultures,  in  which  the  medium 
employed  consisted  of  tomato  root  or  stem  and  leaf  decoction  added  as 
a nutrient  base  to  shredded  agar.  Other  media  were  tried,  but  none 
proved  any  more  satisfactory  than  the  one  containing  tomato  decoction. 

Every  attempt  at  isolation  of  root  infesting  organisms  resulted  in 
the  appearance  of  one,  or  sometimes  two,  species  of  Fusarium^.  The 
apparently  constant  presence  of  one  or  both  of  these  species  suggested 
to  the  writer  their  possible  casual  relation  to  the  yellow  blight.  Hence, 
the  next  step  was  to  determine  whether  by  artificial  means  the  disease 
could  be  produced  by  these  two  species  of  Fusanum,  all  other  organ- 
isms being  eliminated  from  the  cultures. 

Inoculation  Experiments 

In  July,  1911,  a series  of  experiments  was  started  with  a view 
to  developing  the  blight  artificially.  Seed  of  the  two  varieties  known 
as  Sparks’  Earliana  and  Truckers’  Favorite  was  first  subjected  to  fungi- 
cidal treatment  by  immersion  for  ten  minutes  in  a 1-1000  solution  of 
HgCl‘2.  The  seed  was  next  planted  in  common  garden  soil  which  had 
been  sterilized  in  the  autoclave  at  1 20  degrees  C.  The  seedlings,  from 
their  appearance  above  ground  until  the  date  of  transplanting  (August 
1 7th  to  30th)  were  irrigated  only  with  sterilized  water.  Every  pos- 
sible precaution  was  observed  in  an  effort  to  prevent  accidental  intro- 
duction of  blight-producing  organisms.  Two  hundred  and  sixty-five 
6-inch  flower  pots  were  next  filled  with  thoroughly  pulverized  garden 

^Subsequently  identified  by  Dr.  H.  W.  Wollenweber,  U.  S.  Dept,  of  Agr.,  as 
belonging  to  the  section  Elegans  of  the  Genus  Fusarium.  The  more  constant  species 
is  F.  orlhoceras,  App.  & Wr.,  the  less  constant  species  is  F.  ox})sporum  (Schlecht). 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


7 


soil  and  the  whole  lot  thoroughly  sterilized  at  1 20  degrees  C.  One 
hundred  and  seventy-five  of  these  pots  were  planted  to  Earliana  seed- 
lings, 80  of  them  being  set  aside  as  check  plants.  The  remaining  95 
were  inoculated  by  placing  a small  fragment  of  spore-bearing  mycelium 
of  the  suspected  Fusarium  species  on  the  exposed  roots  of  the  intended 
host.  In  the  same  manner  46  Truckers’  Favorite  plants  were  inocu- 
lated from  pure  cultures  of  the  same  organism  and  44  seedlings  of  this 
variety  were  set  aside  as  check  plants.  Upon  the  recovery  of  these 
plants  from  the  shock  induced  by  transplanting  they  were  all  trans- 
ferred at  one  time  to  the  department  greenhouse  where  they  were  kept 
throughout  the  fall  and  winter  months  of  1 9 1 1 . At  this  time  we  were 
unaware  of  the  fact  tnat  the  organisms  associated  with  the  disease  in 
question  are  characterized  by  high  optimum  temperatures.  The  tem- 
perature of  the  greenhouse  in  which  these  plants  were  kept  was  at  no 
time  during  the  experiment  equal  to  the  optimum  of  Fusarium  orthoceras 
or  F.  oxysporum.  And  this  probably  accounts  in  part  for  our  failure 
to  secure  a quite  typical  symptomatic  complex. 

Owing  to  a protracted  period  of  cold  weather  and  failure  to 
supply  the  greenhouse  with  sufficient  heat  fully  six  per  cent  of  the  inocu- 
lated plants  were  lost  by  freezing.  Of  those  which  survived,  38  mani- 
fested more  or  less  typical  symptoms  of  the  characteristic  blight,  but 
in  no  case  was  the  evidence  above  ground  absolutely  convincing.  It 
was  only  after  washing  the  roots  of  these  plants  free  from  soil  and  com- 
paring them  with  the  roots  of  the  check  plants  that  the  diseased  condi- 
tion of  the  former  was  made  more  evident.  From  the  roots  of  the 
blighted  plants  we  were  able  each  time  to  recover  the  organism  used  in 
inoculation  as  was  later  determined  by  comparison  with  the  original 
cultures.  Six  additional  plants  showed  only  a trace  of  the  disease  in 
the  roots. 

Of  the  90  check  plants  all  but  four  were  free  from  disease. 
From  the  surface  roots  of  these  four  a species  of  Fusarium  belonging 
to  Section  Elegans  was  recovered  which,  if  not  identical  with,  is  closely 
related  to  Fusarium  ox'^sporum. 

Pure  Culture  Inoculations 

In  order  to  determine  the  method  of  infection  produced  by  the 
causative  organism,  seeds  were  removed  from  the  interior  of  thoroughly 
ripe  tomatoes  and  placed  in  tubes  of  slanted  soil  agar  where,  after  five 
days  they  germinated.  Transfer  was  then  made  from  a pure  culture 
of  Fusarium  orthoceras  to  each  of  several  uncontaminated  seedling  cul- 
tures and  placed  in  a culture  chamber  the  temperature  of  which  was 
approximately  2U  C.  (68.3°  F.)  Within  36  hours  a visible  growth 
of  mycelium  had  developed.  The  hyphae  soon  spread  in  the  direction 
of  the  young  root  and  within  48  hours  noticeable  discoloration  was 
apparent. 


8 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


Four  days  after  the  inoculation  of  the  seedlings  several  thin  hand 
sections  of  a diseased  radicle  were  made.  These  were  mounted  in  water 
and  examined  with  the  microscope.  Without  the  use  of  stains  or  other 
reagents  the  m.ethod  of  infection  and  progress  of  the  invading  hyphae 
were  easily  and  distinctly  visible. 

Fig.  7,  Plate  IV,  represents  a section  of  the  peripheral  cells 
of  an  infected  radicle  and  illustrates  the  habit  of  the  organism  and  its 
manner  of  cell  invasion.  The  infecting  hyphae  as  shown  in  Fig.  8, 
Plate  IV,  grow  from  an  already  occupied  cell  directly  through  the 
cell  wall  into  the  neighboring  cells.  And  as  was  frequently  observed 
the  cytoplasm  in  contact  with  the  cell  wall  of  a newly  invaded  cell  is 
pushed  in  toward  the  center  of  the  cell  as  much  as  1 Yl  mmm.  by  the 
hyphae  which  have  effected  an  entrance  through  the  cell  wall.  All 
infected  cells  speedily  break  down,  their  walls  becoming  yellowish  and 
in  time  quite  collapsed.  Growth  of  the  fungus  within  its  host  is  both 
intercellular  and  intracellular.  With  the  progress  of  the  hyphae  the 
cells  rapidly  come  to  be  completely  occupied  with  mycelium,  the  cor- 
tical tissue  being  the  first  to  suffer.  But  in  time  the  vascular  tract  is 
encroached  upon  and  ultimately  yields  to  the  advancing  parasite. 

Cross-sections  of  the  hypocotyl  of  the  infected  seedling  showed 
no  evidence  of  the  fungus  so  long  as  any  part  of  the  root  remained  in- 
tact. With  the  destruction  of  the  root  there  was  always  a gradual 
cessation  of  growth  of  the  aerial  portion  of  the  seedling  followed  by 
loss  of  color  and  final  collapse. 

Repeated  experiments  involving  the  inoculation  of  tomato  seed- 
lings in  pure  culture  invariably  resulted  in  destructive  infection,  Snd  this 
without  previous  mechanical  or  other  iniury  having  been  suffered  by 
the  plants.  The  writer  has  demonstrated  by  these  experiments  and  those 
involving  artificial  infection  of  potted  plants  the  fact  that  in  Fusarium 
orthoceras  we  have  to  do  with  a facultative  saprophyte  which  in  its 
relation  to  the  tomato  plant  is  a fungus  of  well-defined  and  vigorous 
parasitic  character.  Field  and  laboratory  studies  all  po  to  show  that 
invasion  of  the  roots  of  the  tomato  does  not  necessarily  depend  upon 
infliction  of  mechanical  injury  upon  these  organs,  though  there  can  be 
no  doubt  as  to  such  injury  acting  as  a contributing  factor  in  fields  de- 
voted to  transplanted  plants,  subsequently  carelessly  cultivated. 

As  stated  in  another  part  of  this  paper,  there  seems  good  reason 
to  believe  that  at  least  two  varieties  of  Fusarium  ox\jsporum  are  fre- 
quently found  associated  with  F.  orthoceras  in  the  diseased  roots  of 
blighting  tomato  plants  and  have  been  isolated  from  the  vascular  tissue 
of  the  roots  of  plants  killed  by  the  disease.  In  the  course  of  the  studies 
upon  this  type  of  tomato  blight  the  writer  has  prepared  hundreds  of 
permanent  stained  slides  of  transverse  and  longitudinal  sections  made 
from  the  roots  of  plants  in  every  stage  of  the  disease;  but  it  should  be 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight  9 

noted  that  with  few  exceptions  these  slides  show  hyphae  only  in  the 
cortical  tissue. 

In  August,  1913,  Wollenweber  reported  having  found  Rhizoc- 
tonia  in  the  roots  of  blighting  plants  collected  at  Hermiston  and  Hood 
River,  Oregon.  This  discovery  inclined  Dr.  Wollenweber  to  the  opinion 
that  Rhizoctonia  may  be  an  important  factor  in  the  development  of 
the  yellow  blight.  Culture  experiments  to  determine  the  possible  rela- 
tion of  Rhizoctonia  to  the  yellow  blight  have  not  yet  been  made  except 
in  a preliminary  way.  Six  healthy  tomato  plants  transplanted  to  six- 
inch  pots  of  unsterihzed  greenhouse  soil  were  inoculated  with  Fusarium 
orthoceras  and  Rhizoctonia.  A similar  number  of  plants  were  inocu- 
lated with  Fusarium  orthoceras  only,  and  a like  number  were  planted 
without  inoculation.  These  plants  were  kept  for  four  months  in  the 
Arlington,  Va.,  greenhouse  at  a temperature  somewhat  under  the  opti- 
mum for  these  two  fungi.  When  the  plants  began  to  set  fruit  symptoms 
of  blight  became  noticeable,  but  no  differences  could  be  noted  between 
those  inoculated  with  Fusarium  alone  and  those  inoculated  with  Fusa- 
rium and  Rhizoctonia.  In  an  effort  to  recover  the  two  organisms  from 
the  several  diseased  plants  positive  results  followed  with  reference  to 
Fusarium,  but  Rhizoctonia  appeared  in  none  of  the  cultures.  It  is, 
therefore,  barely  possible  that  the  inoculations  with  the  latter  parasite 
failed  to  result  in  infection.  It  should  also  be  noted  here  that  in  none 
of  the  many  plate  cultures  made  during  1910  and  1911  were  any 
colonies  of  Rhizoctonia  observed,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  these 
cultures  were  made  from  plants  representing  the  several  stages  of  the 
disease  from  its  incipiency  to  the  actual  death  of  the  parts  above  ground. 
Just  what  part,  if  any,  of  this  type  of  root  disease  is  played  by  Rhizoc- 
tonia remains  yet  to  be  insevtigated.  The  optimum  temperature  for 
Rhizoctonia  is  essentially  the  same  as  that  for  the  two  species  of  Fusa- 
rium isolated  from  diseased  plants.  It  would,  therefore,  seem  reason- 
able that  if  Rhizoctonia  is  a prime  factor  in  inducing  this  type  of  tomato 
blight  the  disease  should  have  been  reported  from  other  parts  of  the  United 
States,  for  Rhizoctonia  maybe  found  in  cultivated  soil  almost  anywhere  in 
the  United  States,  and  is  known  to  induce  disease  in  the  roots  of 
many  of  our  cultivated  plants^  including  the  potato.  In  their  refer- 
ence to  the  several  plants  subject  to  Rhizoctonia  infection  Stevens  and 
Hall  do  not  report  the  tomato  as  a host  of  this  organism,  nor  does  it 
appear  until  August,  1913,  that  Rhizoctonia  has  been  observed  as 
seriously  affecting  the  tomato. 

Culture  Studies  of  the  Fusarium  Species 

Various  media,  including  1 Yl  potato  agar,  potato  cylin- 

ders, carrot  agar,  wheat  heads,  pear  agar,  tomato  agar,  stems  of  various 
plants  including  tomato,  cotton  and  flax,  and  grains  of  corn  and  rice 


^Stevens  & Hall:  Diseases  of  Economic  Plants.  P.  61,  1910. 


10  Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 

were  employed  in  the  culture  studies  of  the  Fusarium  species  isolated 
from  the  diseased  roots  of  plants  grown  in  the  field  and  those  arti- 
ficially inoculated  and  grown  in  the  greenhouse.  In  addition  to  the 
foregoing,  sterilized  garden  soil  consisting  chiefly  of  decomposed  basalt 
was  successfully  used. 

Of  all  media  employed,  steamed  potato  cylinders,  boiled  rice,  and 
wheat  heads  produced  the  most  abundant  growth  of  aerial  mycelium ; 
whereas  the  soil  cultures  showed  scant  growth  on  the  surface  and  a 
profuse  subterranean  growth.  \\/hen  grown  on  rice  the  sclerotia  of 
F.  ox^sporum  vary  in  color  from  light  pink  to  a deep  wine  red.  On 
steamed  potato  cylinders  they  are  blue.  This  development  of  color  is 
apparently  influenced  by  temperature,  for  it  was  found  on  experiment 
that  when  cultures  were  incubated  at  30°  C.  the  hues  were  faint  or 
in  some  cultures  of  F.  orthoceras  failed  altogether.  On  the  other  hand, 
when  subjected  to  a temiperature  of  1 8°  C.  or  lower  the  colors  were 
intensified,  though  less  brilliant  in  F.  orthoceras.  These  observations  as 
to  the  possible  influence  of  temperature  on  the  depth  of  color  agree  with 
those  recorded  by  Lewis,  1 9 1 3^,  in  his  studies  of  several  disease- 
producing  species  of  Fusarium. 

Numerous  efforts  to  produce  the  normal  stages  of  the  two  species 
of  Fusarium  on  the  various  kinds  of  agar  media  failed  in  whole  or  in 
part.  But  pure  cultures  grown  on  the  young  stems  of  woody  plants 
or  the  older  stem  tissue  of  herbaceous  plants  such  as  the  tomato  or 
potato,  or  on  heads  of  wheat  resulted  in  the  normal  development  of 
microconidia,  macroconidia,  and  chlamydcspores,  provided  the  cultures 
were  grown  under  conditions  of  favorable  temperature  and  humidity. 
Of  the  various  kinds  of  agar,  best  results  obtained  through  the  use  of 
a V/2%  potato  agar.  Wollenweber,  1913^,  in  his  studies  of  the 
genus  Fusarium,  has  found  that  when  certain  species  are  grown  on 
boiled  rice,  potato  or  other  starchy  media  certain  secondary  characters 
develop,  characters  which  miay  not  appear  at  all  when  the  same  species 
are  grown  on  the  steamed  stems  of  woody  or  herbaceous  plants. 

Granting  the  importance  of  employing  non-starchy  media  as  a 
convenient  method  of  securing  the  development  of  normal  stages,  in  the 
life  history  of  Fusarium  ox'psporum  and  F.  orthoceras  the  writer  has 
demonstrated  by  experiment  that  any  radical  change  of  one  or  more 
growth  conditions  may,  regardless  of  the  nature  of  the  sub-stratum, 
induce  abnormalities  in  the  mycelium  or  in  the  number  and  kind  of 
spores.  These  abnormalities,  however,  disappear  when  transfers  are 
again  made  to  non-starchy  media  and  incubated  at  the  optimum  tem- 
perature and  normal  humidity,  thus  proving  their  physiologic  nature. 


^Lewis,  Chas.  EL.  Comparative  Studies  of  Certain  Disease  Producing  Species  of 
Fusarium.  Bull,  219,  Maine  Agr.  Exp.  Sta.,  1913. 

^Wollenweber,  H.  W.  Studies  on  the  Fusarium  Problem.  Phytopathology:  3, 
25:  1913. 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


11 


To  determine  the  possible  effect  of  growth  on  the  same  kind  of 
medium  for  a period  of  years,  an  isolation  of  Fusarium  orthoceras  made 
from  the  root  of  a diseased  tomato  plant  on  July  3,  1911,  was  trans- 
ferred on  July  31,  1911,  to  tomato  agar  consisting  of  a nutrient  base 
of  tomato  root  and  stem  decoction  to  which  was  added  1 2 grams  of 
commercial  agar  to  every  liter  of  decoction. 

From  this  culture,  known  as  al,  transfers  were  made  on  Nov. 
1 , 1 9 1 1 , to  tubes  containing  tomato  agar  of  the  same  strength.  On 
August  28,  1912,  transfers  from  the  November,  1911,  cultures  were 
made  to  tomato  agar  and  allowed  to  dry  out  in  the  laboratory  until 
September  24th,  when  they  were  used  in  making  transfers  to  1 !/2% 
potato  agar.  In  every  instance  the  cultures  were  subjected  to  tem- 
peratures varying  from  1 6°  to  30°  C.  and  throughout  the  growth  of 
the  fungus  on  tomato  agar,  a period  covering  38  months,  no  notice- 
able variation  affecting  the  cultural  characters  was  observed.  When 
transferred  to  lactose  agar  or  1 J/2%  potato  agar  the  growth  of  my- 
celium was  vigorous  and  noticeably  more  abundant  than  when  grown 
on  tomato  agar.  F.  orthoceras,  grown  on  lactose  agar,  produces  marked 
sub-aerial  growth,  whereas  when  grown  on  tomato  or  potato  agar,  the 
growth  is  almost  wholly  aerial. 

The  Temperature  Factor 

Field  observations  covering  several  seasons  invited  the  inference 
that  the  influence  of  temperature  as  a factor  in  the  development  of  the 
root-infesting  organisms  might  be  of  considerable  importance.  To  secure 
data  on  this  and  other  questions  such  as  previous  treatment  of  land  now 
devoted  to  tomatoes,  methods  of  transplanting,  cultivation,  etc.,  the 
writer  secured  the  co-operation  of  62  tomato  growers,  most  of  whom 
live  in  the  Yakima  and  Snake  River  Valleys.  It  was  reported  by  all 
but  six  or  eight  that  in  their  opinion  the  heat  and  wind  greatly  accele- 
rated the  disease.  These  deductions  were  not  founded  upon  ascertained 
facts  regarding  soil  temperature,  light  intensity,  wind  movement,  etc., 
but  upon  investigation  it  has  been  found  that  a certain  and  definite  rela- 
tion exists  between  the  temperature  of  the  medium  in  which  the  roots 
grow  and  the  appearance  and  severity  of  the  disease.  Many  growers 
have  for  years  made  it  a practice  to  transplant  their  tomato  plants  in 
from  six  to  eight  inches  of  soil  and  usually  very  much  to  their  profit 
owing  to  the  consequent  reduction  in  the  number  of  blighted  plants. 

Cn  the  14th  of  May,  1911,  467  healthy,  vigorous  plants  were 
planted  in  an  open,  unshaded  field  previously  devoted  to  wheat.  These 
plants  were  set  in  holes  varying  in  depth  from  four  to  six  inches.  They 
were  frequently  irrigated  and  received  sufficient  cultivation  to  give  them 
every  possible  advantage  through  maintenance  of  favorable  tillage.  The 
following  tables  give  the  results  of  field  observations  made  on  two  sepa- 
rate occasions  during  the  season  of  1911: 


Blighted  Plants 

Per  cent. 

(N  00  <N 

CO  CO  o ON  vd  .-i 

OOC^I^t^NT 'O 

d 

IS 

VO  O CNJ  1-H  On  O 
cq  1-H  m VO  CO  CO 

Atmospheric  temperature  at  Lewiston.  Idaho,  for  seven 
days  prior  to  observation.  | 

Mean 

70°  F 

74°  F 

80°F 

83°  F 

84°  F 

86°  F 

84°  F 

Minimum 

b pL.  (X.  (X.  Cx.  (l. 

OCOOsOCOt^OO 
lO  ID  'O  \0 'O 

Maximum  | 

^ tL(  0 bo  O 0 

0 0 O 0 tT.  VO  O 
O'^O'OOOO 

OV  ON  ^ On  »-H  i-H 

f-1  cvi  CO  ^ ih  \o 

1-H  rH  1-H  1-H  1-H 

S’pS'BS'B’p 

Date  of 
Observation 

July  18.  1914 

July  18.  1914 

July  18.  1914 

July  18.  1914 

July  18.  1914 

July  18.  1914 

No.  of 
Plants 

Field 

Age 

|l8\8 18 12^58 

Q 

Variety 

Sparks’  Earliana 

Chalk’s  Early  Jewel-.. 

Livingston’s  Beauty. 

Ponderosa — 

Dwarf  Champion  

Truckers’  Favorite 

OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


13 


The  temperatures  recorded  in  the  foregoing  tables  were  obtained 
through  the  courtesy  of  the  \Veather  Bureau,  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture. \V  hile  they  probably  do  not  represent  actual  temperature  condi- 
tions for  the  tomato  field  in  which  the  experiment  was  conducted  they 
at  any  rate  approximate  closely  the  prevailing  temperatures  throughout 
that  part  of  the  Snake  River  Valley.  Unfortunately  soil  temperature 
curves  were  not  obtained  in  the  field;  but  the  writer’s  studies  of  the 
records  of  atmospheric  and  soil  temperatures  (the  latter  taken  at  two 
and  four  inches  depth)  for  Pullman  and  vicinity  and  for  Arlington, 
Va.,  have  been  sufficiently  extensive  to  justify  the  conclusion  that  the 
soil  temperature  at  four  inches  depth  in  an  open  tomato  field  would  be 
roughly  that  of  a curve  representing  the  mean  atmospheric  temperature. 
At  two  inches  depth,  experience  has  shown  that  the  mean  soil  tempera- 
ture for  a given  period  is  during  the  months  of  June,  July,  and  August 
actually  higher  than  that  of  the  immediate  atmosphere. 

Experiments  conducted  in  the  laboratory  where  temperature  con- 
ditions were  controlled  demonstrated  the  fact  that  maximum,  minimum, 
and  optimum  temperatures  for  the  two  species  of  Fusarium  were  approx- 
imately the  same  for  each,  nammly,  37°,  4°,  and  30°  C.  or  95.9°, 
39.2°,  and  86°  F.  Although  the  optimum  temperature  is  relatively 
high,  both  laboratory  and  field  studies  indicate  the  fact  that  both  Fusa- 
rium orthoceras  and  F.  ox^sporum  have  marked  infective  power  at  tem- 
peratures as  low  as  65°  F.  The  rate  of  growth  of  the  mycelium  at 
65°  F.  shows  a marked  decrease  as  compared  with  that  of  cultures  of 
the  same  strain  when  maintained  at  86°  F.  For  example,  visible  growth 
may  be  seen  within  20  hours  at  optimum  temperature;  whereas  at  65°  F., 
the  same  extent  of  growth  is  attainable  in  hardly  less  than  36  hours. 
This  latter  fact  when  contrasted  with  the  recorded  observation  that, 
for  the  region  in  question,  the  month  of  July  marks  the  period  of  maxi- 
mum evaporation  and  low  relative  hurriidity,  may  throw  some  light 
upon  our  attempt  to  account  for  the  excessive  amount  of  blight  during 
that  month. 

Owing  to  lack  of  facilities  for  experiments  in  which  the  several 
factors  could  be  controlled  and  their  effects'  measured,  it  is  obviously 
difficult  to  determine  to  what  extent  the  relative  humidity,  rate  of  wind 
movement,  and  intensity  of  light  and  heat  are  factors  in  an  epidemic 
of  blight.  It  hardly  need  be  pointed  out,  however,  that  the  sum  of 
the  influences  of  these  several  factors,  expressed  m terms  of  evaporation 
from  exposed  leaf  surface,  must  exert  a very  decided  effect  upon  plants 
whose  roots  are  reduced  in  functioning  power.  Given  any  tomato  plant 
in  the  incipient  stages  of  the  disease  with  the  minute,  ultimate  branches 
of  its  roots  already  destroyed,  it  but  needs  a soil  temperature  of  80° 
to  90°  F.  to  bring  about  the  destructive  invasion  of  the  complete  root 
system.  Naturally,  in  the  field,  high  soil  temperature  follows  closely 
upon  increased  atmospheric  temperature.  If  on  the  hottest  days,  there 


14 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


is  also  considerable  wind  movement,  the  rate  of  evaporation  will  be 
accelerated,  and  the  vitality  of  the  plant  diminished.  This  diminished 
vitality  is  expressed,  in  a general  cessation  of  growth  in  every  part  of 
the  plant  and  a systemic  impairment  of  functioning  power.  It  needs 
yet  to  be  determined  what  physiologic  processes  underlie  the  character- 
istic torsion  and  color  change  of  the  leaves  and  the  fact  that  wilting, 
if  it  occurs  at  all,  does  so  only  at  the  very  last. 

Field  observations  made  in  1910,  1911,  and  1912  by  the  writer 

unmistakably  indicate  the  potency  of  light  intensity  as  a factor  in 

accelerating  the  yellow  blight.  For  example,  it  is  a well-known  fact 
that  where  a slight  degree  of  shade  is  afforded  by  orchard  or  other 
trees  there  are  relatively  fewer  diseased  plants  than  where  tomato  plants 
of  the  same  variety  are  grown  in  similar  soil,  but  in  open  situations  ex- 
posed to  the  maximum  of  direct  sunlight.  It  might  be  argued  that  this 
difference  in  percentage  of  blighted  plants  could  be  due  to  difference  in 
soil  temperature;  but  in  either  case  the  ground  is  shaded  by  the  dense 

growth  of  tomato  plants  to  such  extent  that  the  soil  temperature  factor 

would  not  be  appreciably  affected. 

Livingston,  191  1 has  shown  that  the  rate  of  water  loss  from 
living  foliage  as  well  as  from  exposed  soil  is  considerably  greater  than 
that  recorded  by  the  white  porous  clay  atmometer  cups  devised  and 
used  by  him  in  his  evaporation  studies.  This  increased  water  loss  is 
due  to  the  fact  that  when  plants  are  exposed  to  direct  sunlight  their 
foliage  absorbs  more  of  radiant  energy  than  obtains  in  the  case  of 
shaded  or  semi-shaded  plants.  This  absorbed  energy  causes  a rise  in 
temperature  of  the  contained  water  and  a consequent  conversion  of 
water  to  water  vapor.  Thus  it  is  that  in  the  case  of  diseased  plants 
suffering  from  invasion  of  their  roots  by  destructive  fungi  any  factor 
tending  toward  increased  water  loss  from  the  leaves  becomes  an  inhib- 
itive  factor  and  hastens  the  physical  decline  of  the  host. 

Description  of  the  Two  Species  of  Fusarium 

According  to  Wollenweber’sf  classification,  1913,  both  Fusa~ 
rium  oxysporum  and  F.  orthoceras  belong  to  the  section  Elegans.  Other 
species  belonging  to  this  section  are  F.  I'pcopersici  Sacc.,  a vascular  para- 
site of  the  tomato  causing  a well-known  wilt  disease  in  this  Country  and 
Southern  Europe;  F.  niveum  Smith;  F.  vasinfectum  Atk.,  a vascular 
parasite  infecting  the  roots  of  the  cotton  plant;  F.  tracheiphilum  Smith; 
F.  redolans  Wollw.,  and  F.  conglutinans  n.  sp. 

Fusarium  orthoceras  differs  from  F.  ox^sporum  in  the  absence  of 
pinnotes,  sporodochia,  and  sclerotia.  Also  it  differs  in  the  fact  that 
triseptate  conidia  number  about  15%  of  the  total  number  of  conidia 
produced  in  a normal  culture;  while  in  F.  ox^sporum  triseptate  conidia 


Radio-atmometer  for  comparing  Light  Intensities.  Plant  World  14,  pp.  96-99. 
tLoc.  cit.,  p.  28. 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


15 


are  prodigiously  numerous  and  4-  and  5 -septate  conidia  constitute  up 
to  25%  and  10%  respectively  the  spore  output  of  a normal  culture. 

Cultures  of  these  two  species  of  Fusarium  on  sterile  basaltic  soil 
invariably  produce  an  abundance  of  chlamydospores,  their  development 
apparently  increasing  upon  loss  of  moisture  from  the  medium.  This 
being  true,  it  naturally  follows  that  in  those  sections  where  the  yellow 
blight  is  most  serious,  the  soil  moisture  and  temperature  conditions  which 
obtain  during  August  and  early  September  are  almost  ideal  for  the  pro- 
duction of  chlamydospores.  The  continued  planting  of  tomatoes  in  the 
affected  sections  of  the  State  must  in  time  result  in  serious  soil  infection 
to  the  end  that,  unless  present  methods  of  tomato  culture  are  improved 
it  must  result  in  continued  and  increasing  crop  devastation. 

In  October,  1912,  some  root  remains  of  tomato  plants  killed  by 
the  yellow  blight  were  collected  from  a Clarkston  (Wash.)  field  and 
examined  under  the  microscope  for  the  presence  of  hyphae.  Small 
bluish  areas  were  observed  to  occur  throughout  the  vascular  tissue  of 
these  dead  roots  which,  m section,  when  microscopically  examined 
proved  to  be  sclerotial  tissue  of  some  fungus.  Subsequently  these 
roots  were  cut  into  thin  bits  or  shavings  and  placed  in  small  paste-board 
boxes,  where  they  remained  five  months  subject  to  the  out-door  winter 
conditions  which  obtained  in  Southeastern  Washington  during  the  season 
of  1912-1913.  Following  this  period  the  root-sections  were  kept 
dry  in  the  laboratory  eleven  months.  They  were  then  washed  ten 
minutes  in  a 1-1000  solution  of  mercuric  chloride,  rinsed  in  several 
washings  of  sterile  water  and  incubated  m test  tubes  at  the  optimum 
temperature  of  Fusarium  orthoceras.  Within  forty-eight  hours  a small 
percentage  of  these  chips  had  become  white  with  mycelium  of  a species 
of  Fusarium  which  upon  further  study  proved  to  be  a variety  of  F. 
ox'^sporum.  Doubtless  these  masses  of  viable  hyphae,  hundreds  of 
which  may  develop  within  one  of  several  main  root  branches  of  a dis- 
eased plant,  are  important  factors  in  the  propagation  of  the  parasite. 

The  two  species  of  Fusarium  identified  with  yellow  blight  are  ex- 
ceedingly prolific  in  the  production  of  thick-walled,  warty  chlamydo- 
spores in  addition  to  the  micro-  and  macroconidia.  The  length  of  time 
these  chlamydospores  may  remain  viable  has  not  been  ascertained,  but 
it  is  certain  that  cultures  may  be  obtained  from  them  at  the  close  of  a 
two-year  period  of  desiccation  m test  tubes  kept  under  ordinary  labora- 
tory conditions. 

CONTROL  STUDIES 

Owing  to  the  fact  that  we  are  here  concerned  with  a disease  prob- 
ably induced  primarily  by  one  or  more  root-destroying  fungi  the  effects 
of  which  are  augmented  by  varietal  susceptibility  and  by  such  external 
factors  as  rapid  loss  of  water  from  the  leaves,  excessive  intensity  of 
sunlight,  and  abundance  of  soil  moisture,  the  problem  of  control  offers 
difficulties  which  have  not  yet  been  overcome.  Moreover,  the  ques- 


16 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 

tion  of  control  of  this  type  of  tomato  blight  is  further  complicated  by 
the  fact  that  the  active  organisms  are  not  obligate  parasites,  but  are' 
facultative  saprophytes  capable  of  remaining  virile  through  several  sea- 
sons. Experience  covering  a period  of  many  years  has  shown  that  the 
causative  organisms  are  present  in  the  soil  regardless  of  the  nature  of 
its  treatment  or  the  kind  of  crop  or  crops  grown  in  any  given  field 
prior  to  its  being  planted  to  tomatoes. 

During  the  summer  of  1911  the  Washington  Experiment  Station 
conducted  an  experiment  at  Clarkston,  Washington,  involving  the  plant- 
ing of  1262  plants  as  follows:  (1  ) 500  plants  of  six  varieties  on  soil 
which  had  been  for  many  years  devoted  to  the  growing  of  wheat;  (2) 
300  plants  of  four  different  varieties  planted  in  an  old  peach  orchard 
in  which  tomatoes  had  not  previously  been  grown;  (3)  62  plants  of 
one  variety  grown  in  a garden  where  tomatoes  had  been  grown  in 
former  years;  (4)  400  plants  in  virgin  sage-brush  soil.  The  object 
of  this  experiment  was  to  secure  data  on  the  relation  of  blight  prevalence 
to  previous  cropping  and  treatment  of  soil.  The  results  were  as  fol- 
lows: Field  No.  1,  plants  of  65  days  field  age  showed  63.5%  of 
blight;  Field  No.  2,  plants  of  the  same  field  age  and  the  same  varieties 
showed  34.6%  of  blight.  Field  No.  3 was  planted  to  Sparks’  Earli- 
ana  plants  and  m.ay  be  disregarded  so  far  as  it  concerns  this  experiment, 
though  it  is  of  interest  to  note  that  of  the  62  plants  in  this  lot  all  but 
seven  succumbed  to  the  blight.  Observations  recorded  during  the  same 
season  relative  to  the  occurrence  of  blight  in  fields  previously  devoted 
to  tomatoes  go  to  show  that  the  disease  affected  as  few  as  3^)  of  the 
plants  in  some  fields  and  as  high  as  90%  in  others.  In  Field  No.  4 
the  majority  of  the  plants  were  destroyed,  probably  by  cut  worrrs,  but 
of  the  surviving  few,  not  a single  plant  manifested  any  symptoms  of 
blight.  To  ascertain  whether  or  not  the  popular  belief  in  the  absence 
of  the  tomato  blight  organisms  from  the  virgin  soil  of  the  Clarkston 
country  is  well  founded  it  will  be  necessary  to  conduct  experiments 
covering  a period  of  at  least  six  years.  One  grower  reported  in  1912 
the  occurrence  of  blighted  plants  amiong  those  he  had  planted  in  “new” 
soil;  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  further  study  will  show  like  results. 

The  above  experiments  supplemented  by  data  obtained  from  62 
grov/ers  would  seem  to  indicate  the  futility  of  crop  rotation  as  a pos- 
sible m.eans  of  control.  At  least,  it  may  be  said  that  no  system  of  crop 
rotation  has  been  discovered  the  practice  of  which  will  materially  affect 
the  occurrence  of  tomiato  blight. 

From  our  own  observations  and  from  occasional  reports  from 
growers,  it  seem.ed  likely  that  the  occurrence  of  the  yellow  blight 
might  in  some  measure  be  traced  to  the  practice  of  transplanting  from 
the  hot-bed  directly  to  the  field,  or  from  hot-bed  to  cold-frame  and 
then  to  the  field.  In  order  to  obtain  data  on  this  phase  of  our  study 
of  the  disease  a questionnaire  was  prepared  and  sent  out  to  as  many 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


17 


tomato  growers  as  had  expressed  a willingness  to  co-operate  with  us. 
It  was  also  conceived  that  by  giving  individual  plants  an  opportunity 
to  grow  to  maturity  without  subjecting  them  to  the  severe  shock  incident 
upon  transplanting  susceptibility  to  invasion  by  the  causative  organisms 
might  be  materially  diminished.  Moreover,  an  effort  was  made  to 
place  each  individual  under  hot-house  conditions  in  order  to  force  its 
development  and  give  it  every  possible  advantage  during  the  first  few 
weeks  of  its  growth.  In  order  to  accomplish  this  result,  three  or  four 
sound  seeds  were  planted  in  a place  at  intervals  of  three  to  four  feet 
apart  in  the  row.  Over  each  planting  was  placed  a glass-covered  box^ 
measuring  12  in.  x 12  in.  x 12  in.  The  glass  cover  was  held  in 
place  by  opposite  grooves  and  could  be  removed  as  soon  as  the  plants 
had  attained  sufficient  size  to  require  no  further  forcing.  By  planting 
four  seeds  to  a hill  we  had  opportunity  to  select  the  most  robust  and 
promising  by  removing  the  other  three. 

In  1912,  two  hundred  of  these  forcing-boxes  were  installed,  half 
of  them  in  a tomato  field  in  Clarkston  and  the  remainder  on  the  Col- 
lege farm  in  a field  where,  during  the  summer  of  1911,  the  writer 
recorded  from  32-34%  of  loss  from  yellow  blight.  The  Clarkston 
experiment,  owing  to  lack  of  proper  care,  did  not  constitute  a satisfac- 
tory test;  though  it  should  be  said  that  of  the  one  hundred  plants,  but 
three  of  them  showed  any  symptoms  of  blight,  and  this  at  a time  when 
the  disease  had  reached  its  maximum  severity.  Check-rows  of  trans- 
planted plants  alongside  those  grown  under  the  forcing-boxes  blighted 
much  more  freely,  but  were  so  over-run  with  weeds  as  to  make  the 
experiment  almost  valueless.  Throughout  the  neighborhood,  however, 
transplanted  plants  were  blighting  in  percentages  ranging  from  4% 

to  93%. 

The  one  hundred  test  plants  grown  on  the  College  farm  at  Pull- 
man were  in  a field  which  was  thoroughly  cultivated  and  kept  free 
from  weeds,  thus  affording  every  advantage  to  the  plants  throughout 
the  experiment.  The  glass  cover  was  not  removed  until  the  plants  had 
attained  a height  of  at  least  six  inches,  after  which  time  they  were 
allowed  to  grow  up  and  over  the  boxes  which  served  to  support  them 
and  thus  keep  the  fruit  from  contact  with  the  soil. 

At  the  close  of  the  season,  late  in  September,  the  percentage  of 
blighted  plants  throughout  the  field  and  on  either  side  of  the  experi- 
mental row  amounted  to  1.5%,  though  in  some  parts  of  the  field  the 
diseased  plants  numbered  as  many  as  4%.  All  plants  not  grown 
within  the  forcing-boxes  had  been  transplanted  from  hot-beds  directly 
to  the  field.  The  experimental  row  was  planted  in  the  midst  of  the 
field  and  directly  through  that  part  of  it  where,  in  the  summer  of  1912, 
the  percentage  of  diseased  plants  reached  a maximum  of  45%.  Not 

cost  of  these  boxes,  including  glass  cover,  need  not  exceed  25  cents  per  box, 
and  with  proper  care  they  may  be  used  several  seasons. 


18 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


one  of  the  plants  grown  from  seed  under  the  forcing-boxes  showed  any 
symptoms  of  blight.  Moreover,  they  all  made  a more  rapid  and  vig- 
orous growth,  than  those  not  thus  grown.  To  be  sure,  we  can  not 
present  this  as  a satisfactory  test  of  the  merits  or  shortcomings  of  this 
method  of  growing  tomatoes,  but  it  is  reasonable  to  hope  that  the  use 
of  the  forcing-boxes  points  the  way.  The  writer  has  never  seen  the 
yellow  blight  appear  among  plants  left  standing  in  hot-beds  or  cold- 
frames,  though  two  Clarkston  tomato  growers  report  having  observed 
a limited  number  of  diseased  hot-bed  plants  which  had  never  been  dis- 
turbed. It  is  not  improbable  that  such  instances  of  blight  may  be  trace- 
able to  root  injury. 

It  is  a well-known  fact  that  when  tomato  plants  are  finally  trans- 
planted in  the  field  they  suffer  a shock  so  severe  in  some  cases  as  to  pre- 
clude any  chance  of  recovery.  Other  plants  may  scarcely  wilt,  but  all 
do,  nevertheless,  receive  a genuine  shock,  the  full  recovery  from  which 
requires  from,  five  to  eight  or  more  days.  Many  of  these  plants  in 
being  transferred  from  the  hot-bed  or  the  cold-frame  to  the  field  may 
receive  serious  root  injury,  and  thus  be  rendered  the  m:ore  susceptible 
to  invasion  by  wound  fungi  or  more  virulent  facultative  saprophytes 
such,  for  example,  as  Fusarium  orthoceras  or  F.  ox'^sporum. 

Carelessness  in  cultivation  of  the  transplanted  plants  often  results 
in  injury  to  those  roots  which  miay  have  come  to  occupy  the  surface 
soil  to  a depth  of  three  to  five  inches.  It  has  been  observed  that  growers 
are  sometimes  in  the  habit  of  running  their  cultivator  teeth  within  three 
or  four  inches  of  the  plants — a practice  apt  to  inflict  injury  to  the  roots 
in  soil,  the  July  and  August  temperature  of  which  favors  a rapid  and 
vigorous  development  of  the  attacking  fungi. 

Although  the  experiment  was  not  tried,  judging  from  such  results 
as  have  already  been  obtained,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  in  so  far  as  it 
may  be  practicable,  the  exact  duplication  of  hot-house  conditions  would 
prove  productive  of  a minimum  of  blight.  The  manure  used,  a forkful 
or  more  to  each  hill,  should  be  thoroughly  composted.  This  will  go 
far  toward  the  reduction  of  heat  so  often  observed  in  less  thoroughly 
rotted  manures.  By  this  individual  hot-house  or  forcing-box  m.ethod 
one  may  safely  plant  tomato  seed  several  weeks  earlier  than  is  custom- 
arily regarded  as  a safe  date  for  transplanting  from  hot-bed  or  cold- 
frame.  Moreover,  the  plants  thus  grown  in  the  field  suffer  no  shock 
and  are  afforded  every  advantage,  to  enable  them  to  bear  fruit  earlier, 
a thing  commercially  desirable,  inasmuch  as  it  means  early  market- 
able fruit. 

Essary^,  1912,  has  shown  that  through  selection  for  “blight” 
resistance  we  have  recourse  to  a method  whereby  the  grower  may  prac- 
tically eliminate  that  type  of  tomato  blight  described  by  him  in  Bull. 

*Essary,  S.  H.  1912.  Notes  on  Tomato  Diseases,  with  Results  of  Selection  for 
Resistance.  Tenn.  Agr.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  95. 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight 


19 


95  of  the  Tenn.  Agr.  Exp.  Sta.  Our  own  studies  have  repeatedly 
shown  that  certain  varieties  of  tomato,  e.  g.,  Livingston’s  Dwarf  Cham- 
pion, are  less  susceptible  to  yellow  blight  than  others.  By  crossing  and 
selection  it  is  not  unlikely  that  the  excellent  qualities  and  high  pro- 
ductive power  of  Sparks’  Earhana  or  Bolgiano’s  IXL  might  combine 
with  the  vigor  and  blight  resistance  of  the  Dwarf  Champion  to  yield 
an  excellent  market  tomato  slightly  or  not  at  all  susceptible  to  the  yellow 
blight  organisms. 

Experiments  involving  use  of  chemicals  were  tried,  the  results  of 
which  go  to  show  that  any  treatment  severe  enough  to  check  the  de- 
velopment of  the  parasite  was  also  an  effective  deterrent  to  the  growth 
and  vio'or  of  the  host.  These  experiments  were  confined  to  the  use  of 
the  following  fungicides:  Copper  sulphate  solution  in  the  ratio  of  1 
lb.  of  the  salt  to  2.5  gallons  of  water;  Pyxol,  a standardized  disin- 
fectant; Crest  Spray,  a distillate  made  from  the  refuse  of  fir  stumps; 
and  Nicene,  a fungicide  prepared  by  the  Hood  Chemical  Company  of 
Chicago.  The  following  tabulation  of  the  technique  and  results  has 
been  furnished  through  the  kindness  of  the  assistant  pathologist,  D.  C. 
George,  to  whom  this  part  of  the  problem  was  assigned. 

Test  tubes  containing  10  cc.  of  potato  agar  were 
follows : 

Nicene  Treatment 

Series  A — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  0.01  g. 

Series  B — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  0.25  g. 

Series  C — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  0.50  g. 

Inoculated  with  Fusarium  sp.  on  Dec.  12,  1912. 

Results 

Series  A — Growth  of  fungus  in  each  tube  of  the  series. 

Series  B — Growth  of  fungus  in  each  of  three  tubes. 

Series  C — No  growth. 

Crest  Spray  (Undiluted) 

Series  A — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .05  cc.  of  the  spray. 

Series  B — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .10  cc.  of  the  spray. 

Series  C — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .25  cc.  of  the  spray. 

Result:  No  growth  in  any  of  the  tubes. 

In  another  trial  the  fungicide  was  diluted  to  1/50  of  its  normal 
strength.  Result:  Excellent  growth  of  fungus  in  all  tubes  in  Series 
A and  B,  but  none  in  Series  C. 

Pyxol  (A  Standardized  Disinfectant) 

Series  A — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .05  cc.  of  a 1-56 
solution. 


treated  as 


of  Nicene. 
of  Nicene. 
of  Nicene. 


20  Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 

Series  B — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  . 1 0 cc.  of  a 1-168 
solution. 

Series  C — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  . 1 3 cc.  of  a 1 -224 
solution. 

Result:  Growth  in  all  but  two  tubes  of  Series  C. 

Copper  Sulphate  (1  lb.  to  2.5  Gallons  of  Water) 

Series  A — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .05  cc.  of  solution. 

Series  B — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .10  cc.  of  solution. 

Series  C — 5 tubes  to  each  of  which  was  added  .25  cc.  of  solution. 

Results 

Series  A — Growth  of  Fusarium  in  three  tubes. 

Series  B — Growth  of  Fusarium  in  three  tubes. 

Series  C — No  growth. 

SUMMARY 

1 . The  type  of  tomato  blight  considered  in  this  bulletin  is  appar- 
ently typical  of  the  Upper  Sonoran  Zone  of  the  Pacific  Northwest. 

2.  It  is  primarily  a root  disease  due  wholly  or  in  part  to  two 
species  of  Fusarium. 

3.  From  roots  of  plants  in  various  stages  of  blight  were  iso- 
lated Fusarium  orthoceras  App.  a.  Wollw.  and  at  least  two  varieties  of 
Fusarium  ox'^sporum  (Schlecht). 

4.  Controlled  inoculation  experiments  resulted  in  the  artificial 
production  of  blight  in  nearly  all  inoculated  plants.  From  the  roots 
of  these  plants  the  specific  organisms  were  recovered. 

5.  The  causative  organisms  are  characterized  by  a relatively 
high  optimum  temperature.  When  the  soil  temperature  rises  to  near 
the  optimum  the  first  symptoms  of  blight  appear.  With  rise  of  soil  tem- 
perature the  virulence  of  the  parasites  increases  and  the  blight  becomes 
general. 

6.  Inoculation  of  tomato  seedlings  in  pure  culture  resulted  in 
prompt  and  severe  infection  of  root  system,  the  aerial  portion  of  the 
plants  remaining  free  from  hyphae  until  the  roots  were  destroyed. 

7.  Exposure  to  intense  sunlight  and  wind  tends  to  influence  rate 
of  evaporation  and  thus  renders  the  plants  more  susceptible  to  the 
disease. 

8.  Fusarium  orthoceras  and  F.  ox^sporum  produce  an  abun- 
dance of  chlamydospores  in  the  soil.  It  is  also  possible  that  these 
species  are  readily  propagated  by  perrenating  mycelium  formed  in  the 
roots  of  blighted  plants. 

9.  Owing  to  the  fact  that  the  causative  organisms  are  present 
in  the  soil  and  infect  underground  structures  any  practical  method  of 
soil  treatment  by  fungicides  has  not  been  worked  out. 


OF  Fusarium  to  Tomato  Blight  21 

1 0.  Crop  rotation  or  planting  on  virgin  soil  are  of  doubtful  pre- 
ventive value. 

1 1 . Greatest  freedom  from  the  disease  obtains  wherever  the 
practice  of  transplanting  from  hot-bed  to  cold-frame  or  directly  in  the 
field  has  been  abandoned. 

The  author  wishes  to  express  his  appreciation  of  valued  assist- 
ance rendered  by  N.  Rex  Hunt,  now  of  the  United  States  Department 
of  Agriculture,  and  the  several  tomato  growers  of  the  Pacific  North- 
west, whose  co-operation  made  possible  a knowledo'e  of  many  salient 
facts.  Of  special  importance  to  the  completion  of  this  bulletin  was  the 
assistance  given  by  Mr.  D.  C.  George,  Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
of  the  ^Vashington  State  Experiment  Station. 


EXPLANATION  OF  PLATES 

All  drawings  were  miade  with  aid  of  camera  lucida  except  Fig. 
6,  Plate  IV,  which  was  made  with  the  Edinger  drawing  apparatus. 

The  Zeiss  2 mmi.  N.  A.  1.30  homogeneous  oil  immersion  and 
No.  4 ocular  or  their  equivalents  were  used  in  all  cases  except  Figures 
1-4,  Plate  V,  for  which  a Zeiss  4 mm.  objective  and  No.  4 ocular 
were  used. 


Plate  I — 

Diseased  and  healthy  plants  of  same  age. 


Plate  II — 

Fig.  1 . Root-systems  of  two  tomato  plants  of  same  age  grown 
under  like  conditions  of  climate,  soil,  irrigation,  and 
cultivation.  The  one  on  the  left  is  that  of  a plant 
in  normal  health,  the  other  is  that  of  a plant  in  last 
stages  of  the  blight. 

Fig.  2.  Root-systems  of  two  plants  in  two  different  stages  of 
disease. 

Plate  III— 

Figs.  1 & 2.  Plate  cultures  of  Fusarium  spp.  obtained  from  diseased 
roots  of  blighting  tomato  plants. 

Fig.  2.  Field  near  Clarkston,  Wash.,  in  which  more  than  60% 
of  the  plants  succumbed  to  yellow  blight. 

Plate  IV — 


Fig.  1 . 
Fig.  2. 

Fig.  3. 


Hyphal  branch  of  Fusarium  orthoceras  bearing  conidia 
Conidia  of  F.  orthoceras  produced  in  pure  culture  on 
sterilized  garden  soil. 

Macroconidia  of  F.  orthoceras  grown  in  pure  culture 
on  sterilized  tomato  stem. 


22 


Studies  on  Relation  of  Species 


Fig.  4. 
Fig.  5. 
Fig.  6. 

Fig.  7. 

Fig.  8. 

Fig.  9. 
Fig.  10. 
Fig.  11. 

Fig.  12. 

Plate  V — 
Fig.  1 . 

Fig.  2. 
Fig.  3. 
Fig.  4. 


Immature  chlamydospore  of  Fusarium  orthoceras  grown 
in  pure  culture  on  tomato  agar.  An  aberrant  type  of 
chlamydospore  from  same  culture. 

Terminal,  lateral,  and  intercalary  chlamydospores  of 
Fusarium  sp.  grown  in  pure  culture  on  sterilized 
garden  soil. 

Part  of  cross  section  of  root  of  tomato  seedling  grown 
in  pure  culture  inoculated  with  F.  orthoceras.  Note 
progress  and  character  of  infection  from  periphery 
toward  interior  of  root. 

Part  of  cross  section  of  a seedling  root  showing  inva- 
sion of  another  host  cell. 

Cross  section  of  infected  root  of  blighted  plant  show- 
ing mycelium  in  cortex,  phloem,  and  xylem. 

Longisection  showing  hyphae  within  cells  of  cortex. 

Longisection  showing  hyphae  within  cells  of  phloem. 

Longisection  of  vascular  tissue  of  plant  killed  by  root- 
infesting  Fusaria. 

Haustoria  (?)  formed  at  ends  of  short  hyphal  branches 
of  Fusarium  sp. 

Fragment  of  mycelium  and  spores  of  Fusarium  from 
culture  isolated  from  root  of  blighted  tomato  plant 
obtained  after  1 2 months  of  desiccation  in  labora- 
tory. 

Conidia  of  Fusarium  orthoceras  grown  at  temperature 
of  30°  C. 

Fragment  of  mycelium  and  spores  of  F.  orthoceras 
grown  at  temperature  of  35°  C. 

Microconidia  of  F.  orthoceras  grown  at  temperature  of 
35°  C.  Note  reduced  size  of  spores. 


Plate  II. 


Fig.  1.  <■ 


I'k;.  2. 


Plate  III 


Fig.  2. 


Fig.  3. 


PLATE  IV. 


PLATE  V. 


1^ 

/.  B.  H.  Del. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DEPARTMENT  OF  CHEMISTRY 


T(ie  Quantitative  Determinations  of  Mono, 
Di,  and  Tri  Calcium  Pfiosphates  and 
Ttieir  Application 

By  ; 

GEO.  A.  OLSON 


BULLETIN  NO.  116 
October  3,  1914 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


D.  S.  TEOY,  President Chimacum 

JAS.  C.  CUNNINGHAM,  Vice-President Spokane 

E.  A.  BEYAN,  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

President  of  the  College 

E.  C.  McCEOSKEY Garfield 


STATION  STAFF 


lEA  D.  CAEDIPF,  Ph.  D 

ELTON  FULMEE,  M.  A 

S.  B.  NELSON,  D.  V.  M 

O.  L.  WALLEE,  Ph.  M 

A.  L.  MELANDEE,  Sc.  D 

O.  M.  MOEEIS,  B.  S 

GEO.  W.  SEVEEANCE,  B.  S 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S 

A.  B.  NYSTEOM,  M.  S 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S. 

W.  T.SHAW,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S 

J.  G.  HALL,  M.  A 

E.  G.  SCHAFEE,  M.  S 

WM.  HISLOP,  M.  S 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A ........... 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  D.  V.  S. 

M.  A.  YOTHEES,  B.  S 

HENEY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S 

C.  F.  MONEOE,  B.  S.  A 

C.  B.  SPEAGUE,  B.  S 

D.  C.  GEOEGE,  B.  S. 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN 

F.  W.  ALLEN,  M.  S 

ELLA  W.  BEOCK 

A.  L.  SHEEMAN,  B.  S 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Veterinarian 

Irrigation  Engineer 

: Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Plant  Pathologist. 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  So'il  Physicist 

Assistant  Cerealist 

•Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  in  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Executive  Clerk 

Assistant  Chemist 


THE  QUANTITATIVE  DETERMINATIONS  OF  MONO, 
DI,  AND  TRI  CALCIUM  PHOSPHATES  AND 
THEIR  APPLICATION 

By  GEO.  A.  OLSON 


Just  why  ammonium  citrate  has  been  used  to  deter- 
mine the  amount  of  available  phosphoric  acid  in  fertilizers 
is  difficult  to  understand.  The  action  of  this  solvent  cer- 
tainly is  not  based  upon  any  fundamental  principle  of  chem- 
istry. Neither  can  it  be  said  that  the  compounds  of  phos- 
phoric acid  soluble  in  ammonium  citrate  are  forms  of 
phosphoric  acid  available  for  the  plants,  since  some  of  the 
iron  and  aluminum  phosphates  are  soluble  in  this  solvent 
and  yet  practically  unavailable  for  plants. 

The  method  in  use  for  determining  available  phos- 
phoric acid  is  wholly  empirical  and  for  this  reason  alone, 
will  always  prove  to  be  unsatisfactory.  An  empirical 
method  involves  certain  conditions  of  definite  concentra- 
tion, time,  and  temperature  upon  particles  of  the  same 
chemical  substance  offering  equal  surfaces.  Other  things 
being  equal,  any  variation  in  concentration,  time,  or  tem- 
perature will  materially  influence  the  results.  Therefore, 
an  empirical  method  will  give  unsatisfactory  results  in 
the  hands  of  different  operators,  with  different  substances, 
and  with  different  degrees  of  fineness  of  the  substance. 

It  has  been  repeatedly  stated  that  ammonium  citrate 
is  valuable  as  a measure  of  the  amount  of  dicalcium  phos- 
phate that  may  be  contained  in  a fertilizer  and  dicalcium 
phosphate  together  with  monocalcium  phosphate  are  ac- 
cepted as  forms  available  for  plants.  But  since  some  of 
the  iron  and  aluminum  phosphates  are  soluble  in  ammonium 
citrate,  all  of  the  phosphoric  acid  soluble  in  ammonium 
citrate  can  not  be  said  to  be  available. 

Inasmuch  as  we  have  had  no  other  suitable  method 
for  -determining  dicalcium  phosphate  than  ammonium  ci- 
trate it  has  consequently  been  adopted  as  the  standard 
method  for  measuring  dicalcium  phosphate  and  with  this 
adoption  ammonium  citrate  soluble,  or  reverted,  or  avail- 
able phosphoric  acid,  or  all  of  these  forms  have  been  ex- 


2 


prcssions  in  fertilizer  laAvs  enacted  in  the  various  states 
of  the  Union. 

If  anirnoninm  citrate  is  a;  measure  of  the  dicalcium 
phosphate,  or  if  you  please,  the  available  phosphoric  acid 
(Avdien  the  Avater  soluble  phosphoric  acid  has  been  con- 
sidered Avith  it)  in  a fertilizer,  then  this  solvent  should 
produce  no  action  on  a form  of  i)hosphoric  acid  such  as 
tricalcium  phosphate,  because  tricalcium  phosphate  is  from 
the  above  hypothesis  insoluble  in  ammonium  citrate. 

This  theory  can  be  tested  out  in  several  Avays,  and  one 
perhaps,  as  g*ood  as  any  is  to  digest  the  tricalcium  phos- 
X)hate  of  knoAAUi  puritv  according  to  the  official  method 
(Bui.  107  (revised)  U. 'S.  Dept.  Agr.  Bur.  Chem.). 

One  gram  of  precipitated  tricalcium  phosphate  Avhich 
I Avill  shoAv  later  to  be  free  from  mono-  and  dicalcium 
phosphate  Avas  digested  Avith  ammonium  citrate  according 
to  the  official  method.  In  another  0.15  gram,  of  calcium 
oxide  Avas  added  to  one  gram  of  precipitated  tricalcium 
phosphate  and  digested  Avith  ammonium  citrate  in  the  same 
manner.  Besides  these  tAvo,  a third  lot  of  one  gram  of 
]:)recipitated  tricalcium  phosphate  A\ms  digested  Avith  0.1 
normal  citric  acid.  The  results  for  the  phosphoric  acid 
soluble  in  ammonium  citrate  computed  from  the  total  and 
ammonium  citrate  insoluble  and  citric  acid  insoluble  Avere 
as  folloAvs : 

TABLE  I. 

Solubility  of  Tricalcium  Phosphate  in  Ammonium  Citrate 
and  Citric  Acid. 


Amonium  Citrate  Soluble 

Citric  Acid  Soluble 

Ca3  (P  04)2  1 

1 Ca3  (P  04)2 

1 plus  .15  CaO 

Ca3  (P  04)2 

Per  Cent  P2  05 

4.80 

3.75 

5.61 

These  results  lead  us  to  believe  that  ammonium  citrate 
reacts  Avith  tricalcium  phosphate,  as  Avell  as,  Avith  dical- 
ciurn  phosphate  transforming  a part  of  the  tricalcium  phos- 
phate into  ammonium  phosphate  and  calcium  citrate  as 
folloAvs  .- 

2(Nll4)3C6H507  + 0a3(PO4)2-=2(NH4)3PO4-fCa3(C6H507)2 
The  citric  acid  acting  on  the  tricalcium  phosphate 


3 

transforms  a part  of  the  tricalcium  phosphate  into  phos- 
phoric acid  and  calcium  citrate  as  follows : 

2C«H8O7+0a3(P04)2=2HaPO4+0a3(C6H5O7)2 

That  ammonium  citrate  acted  upon  tricalcium  phos- 
pliate  was  known  in  1882  when  Hudson  presented  his  re- 
sults of  the  action  of  ammonium  citrate  on  Imne  meal 
(Wiley,  Principles  and  Practice  of  Agricultural  Analysis, 
Vol.  IT,  p.  132,  1895  edit.)-  The  complete  solution  of  tri- 
calcium phosphate  with  ammonium  and  sodium  citrate  as 
obtained  by  Bosworth  (Journ.  Ind.  & Eng.  Chem.,  Vol.  6, 
No.  3,  p.  228)  is  not  in  accord  with  the  results  obtained 
by  other  investigators.  Under  the  conditions  stipulated  it 
was  found  in  this  laboratory  that  only  a part  of  the  tri- 
calcium phosphate  is  rendered  soluble.  This  amount  is  too 
large  to  make  the  method  scientific  and  satisfactory.  No 
doubt,  if  the  reaction  was  continued  and  sufficient  solvent 
used  all  of  the  tricalcium  phosphate  would  be  rendered 
soluble.  Further,  ammonium  citrate  acts  upon  iron  and 
aluminum  phosphates  rendering  them  also  partly  soluble, 
yet  these  forms  of  phosphoric  acid  are  not  considered  avail- 
able for  plants. 

From  the  facts  that  have  been  made  known  by  inves- 
tigators concerning  the  action  of  ammonium  citrate  on 
compounds  of  phosphoric  acid  it  can  not  be  said  that  the 
part  of  the  phosphoric  acid  that  has  been  rendered  sol- 
uble with  ammonium  citrate  is  available  phosphoric  acid. 
The  phosphoric  acid  obtained  from  tricalcium  phosphate 
is  certainly  not  the  phosphoric  acid  of  a dicalcium  phos- 
phate. 

Even  if  we  allowed  for  the  10%  or  more  of  all  of  the 
phosphoric  acid  in  tricalcium  phosphate  according  to  the 
method  now  in  use  the  method  might  be  acceptable  by 
making  proper  corrections  for  the  kind  of  material  under 
analj'sis.  But  the  serious  objection  in  the  use  of  the  am- 
monium citrate  comes  from  the  fact  that  since  ammonium 
citrate  soluble  phosphoric  acid  is  the  expression  of  avail- 
able phosphoric  acid,  manufacturers  have  invented  and  pat- 
ented processes  which  increase  the  amount  of  phosphoric 
acid  soluble  in  ammonium  citrate,  even  though  the  sub- 
stance, as  will  be  seen  later,  is  not  a dicalcium  or  mono- 
calcium phosphate. 

One  manufacturer  furnished  the  writer  with  a lot  of 
phosphate  fertilizer  which  he  claimed  contained  28  per 
cent  of  citrate  soluble  phosphoric  acid.  A two-gram  sample 


4 


was  digested  with  ammonium  citrate  exactly  in  accordance 
with  the  official  method.  Another  sample  of  two  grams 
Avas  digested  Avith  0.1  normal  citric  acid.  The  results  for 
the  phosphoric  acid  soluble  in  ainmoniuni  citrate  computed 
from  the  total,  ammonium  citrate  and  citric  acid  insoluble 
AA'cre  as  f oIIoavs  : 

TABLE  II. 

Solubility  of  Phosphate  Fertilizer  in  Ammonium  Citrate 
and  Citric  Acid. 


Total 

Ammonium  Citrate 
Soluble 

Citric  Acid  Soluble 

Per  Cent  P2  0.’> 

29.07 

12.63 

24.75 

If  ammonium  citrate  is  the  expression  of  a dicalcium 
salt  of  phosphoric  acid,  then  the  phosphate  under  question 
contains  considerable  dicalcium  phosphate,  even  .though  the 
results  obtained  do  not  check  Avith  the  claims  of  the  manu- 
facturer. The  action  of  the  citric  acid  on  this  particular 
fertilizer  has  been  very  rapid,  indicating  that  the  material 
is  readily  soluble  in  citric  acid  of  0.1  normality.  The  AAunter 
Avill  present  data  later  to  shoAv  that  this  phosphate  fertil- 
izer could  not  exist  in  the  mono-  or  dicalcium  forms. 

Thus  the  Fresenius,  Ncubauer,  and  Luck  method  Avith 
modifications  has  been  in  continual  operation  since  1871. 
Its  use  has  been  limited  to  the  determination  of  phosphoric 
acid  in  fertilizers  and  the  results  for  this  determination 
are  meaningless.  It  can  not  be  used  for  soils,  plant  or 
animal  tissue,  nor  can  it  be  applied  to  the  determination 
of  phosphoric  acid  in  the  dicalciuin  salt  of  phosphoric  acid. 

It  is  evident  from  Avhat  has  been  said  that  if  it  is  de- 
sirable to  express  the  different  forms  of  phosphoric  acid 
as  they  exist  in  fertilizers  an  entirely  different  method  of 
procedure  Avill  have  to  be  inaugurated.  A method  that  AAdll 
differentiate  betAveen  the  different  forms  of  phosphoric  acid 
as  they  exist  not  only  in  fertilizers,  but  also  in  plant  and 
animal  tissue,  soil,  etc.,  is  needed.  One  of  the  possibilities 
for  a suitable  method  depends  upon  the  reactions  of  cal- 
cium salts  of  phosphoric  acid  A\dth  an  excess  of  ammonium 
hydroxide.  In  case  of  mono,  di,  and  tricalcium  phosphates 
the  reactions  are  as  folloAA^s : 

1.  30aH4(PO4)2+12NH4(OH)=0a3(PO4)2+4(NIl4).sFO4 

+I2H2O. 


6 

2.  3Ca2H2(P04)2+6NH40H  = 2Ca3(P04)2  +2(NH4)3P04  + 

mio. 

3.  Oa3(P04)2+NH4(OH)=No  reaction. 

In  the  first  equation  the  nionocalcium  phosphate  in 
an  excess  of  ammonium  hydroxide  reacts  forming  trical- 
cium phosphate  and  ammonium  phosphate.  The  tricalcium 
phosphate  is  insoluble  while  the  ammonium  phosphate  is 
soluble.  In  other  words,  one-third  of  the  nionocalcium  phos- 
phate has  been  rendered  insoluble  in  the  presence  of  am- 
monium hydroxide.  In  the  second  equation  that  of  dical- 
cium phosphate  two-thirds  of  the  phosphoric  acid  has  been 
rendered  insoluble  with  ammonium  hydroxide,  while  in  case 
of  the  tricalcium  phosphate  all  of  the  tricalcium  phosphate 
remains  insoluble  in  the  presence  of  ammonium  hydroxide. 

Whether  or  not  the  three  forms  of  calcium  phosphate 
reacted  with  ammonium  hydroxide  in  accordance  with  the 
equations  given  above  to  give  quantitative  results  can  be 
readily  determined.  The  first  method  which  suggests  itself 
is  to  take  the  pure  salts  of  mono,  di,  and  tricalcium  phos- 
phates and  determine  the  phosphoric  acid  contained  in  the 
ammonium  hydroxide  filtrates.  Our  experiences  with  ana- 
lyzed chemicals,  however,  convinces  us  that  the  purity  of 
them  is  unreliable.  Such  a procedure  ivould  then  be  ques- 
tionable. The  alternative  is  to  make  the  mono,  di,  and  tri- 
calcium phosphates  in  the  purest  possible  forms.  This  pro- 
cedure is  unnecessary. 

The  easiest  way,  and  unquestionably  as  satisfactory,  is 
to  determine  the  phosphoric  acid  in  pure  phosphoric  acid 
and  likewise  determine  the  linie  content  in  a pure  salt  of 
calcium'.  It  is  obvious  that  the  iron,  aluminum,  or  any 
other  basic  material,  combining  with  phosphoric  acid  in 
the  presence  of  ammonium  hydroxide  would  have  to  be  re- 
moved, before  proceeding  to  determine  either  the  phos- 
phoric acid,  or  calcium,  in  the  respective  solutions  of  phos- 
phoric acid,  or  calcium. 

The  method  of  procedure  adopted  by  the  writer  was 
to  treat  solutions  of  phosphoric  acid,  and  calcium  chloride 
dissolved  in  the  presence  of  a small  amount  of  nitric  acid, 
with  excess  ammonium  hydroxide,  followed  by  filtering. 
The  filtrates  Avere  in  this  way  freed  from  iron,  aluminum 
or  other  basic  materials,  which  would  combine  with  phos- 
phoric acid,  and  be  precipitated  with  ammonium  hydroxide. 
The  filtrates  Avmre  then  acidified  Avith  nitric  acid,  made  up 
to  knoAvn  volumes  and  thoroughly  mixed.  Aliquots  of  the 


6 


phosphoric  acid  and  calcium  solutions  were  taken.  Phos- 
phoric acid  Avas  determined  by  the  molybdate  method,  titrat- 
ing the  yellow  ammonium  phospho-molybdate  Avith  sodium 
hydroxide  of  the  correct  strength  (see  page  4,  BuL  107  (re- 
vised edition)  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.  Bur.  Chem.).  The  lime  Avas 
determined  according  to  the  ammonium  oxalate  method, 
after  having  treated  the  aliquots  Avith  ammonium  hydrox- 
ide folloAved  by  acidifying  Avith  acetic  acid. 

It  Avas  found  that  the  phosphoric  acid  solution  con- 
tained 0.3621%  P-iOs  and  the  calcium  solution  contained 
2.420%  CaO  in  each  c.c.m.  A portion  of  the  phosphoric 
acid  solution  Avas  diluted  ten  times  and  the  calcium  solu- 
tion was  diluted  one  hundred  times.  The  phosphoric  acid 
and  calcium  Avere  mixed  together  in  the  proportions  to 
make  mono,  di,  and  tricalcium  phosphates  as  folloAvs : 


A.  Monocalcium  phosphate. 

9.89  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.0242  CaO 
16.760  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.03621  P2O5 


B.  Dicalcium  phosphate. 

17.00  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.0242  CaO 
14.420  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.03621  P2O5 


C.  Tricalcium  phosphate. 

22.44  cc  of  a solution  each  cc 
12.65  cc  of  a solution  each  cc 


0.0242  CaO 
0.03621  P2O5 


These  mixtures  Avere  then  made  up  to  knoAvn  volumes 
and  thoroughly  mixed.  Aliquots  Avere  then  taken,  treated 
Avith  excess  ammonium  hydroxide  and  filtered.  The  pre- 
cipitates AA^ere  Avashed  in  cold  Avater  and  the  phosphoric  | 
acid  determined  in  the  series  of  filtrates  Avhich  Avere  slightly  “ 
acidified  A\dth  nitric  acid,  AAdiilc  the  calcium  oxide  Avas  de 
termined  Avith  potassium  permanganate  in  the  other  series 
acidified  with  acetic  acid.  The  results  were  as  folloAvs : 


A. 

Per  cent  P205 

Per  cent  CaO 

Per  cent  P205 
Calc,  for 
CaH4(P002 

Found  

0.4085 

none 

61.27 

Theoretical  

0.4045 

none 

60.69 

B. 

Per  cent  P20r) 

Per  cent  CaO 

Per  cent  P20.'> 
Calc,  for 
Ca2H2(P04)2 

Found  

0.177 

none 

53.10 

Theoretical  

0.174 

none 

52.21 

C. 

Per  centP205 

Per  cent  CaO 

Found  

none 

none 

Theoretical  

none 

none 

7 

The  experiment  was  repeated,  using  more  solutions  or 
stronger  solutions  as  follows : 

A.  Monocalciuin  phosphate. 

98.88  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.0242%  CaO 

16.76  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.3621%  P20r) 

B.  Dicalcium  phosphate. 

170.08  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.0242%  CaO 

14.42  cc  of  a solution  each  cc  = 0.3621%  P2O5 

The  results  were  as  follows : 


A.  Per  cent  P20ri  Per  cent  CaO  Per  cent  P2O5 

Calc  for  CaH4(P04)2 

Found  : j 4.028 

I 4.035  none  60.47 

Theoretical  4.046  none  60.69 

B.  Calc,  for  Ca2H2(P04)2 

Found  j 1.730 

I 1.740  none  52.06 

Theoretical  1.74  none  52.21 


From  the  results  obtained  it  will  be  seen  that  not  only 
do  the  reactions  take  place  as  equated,  but  they  react 
quantitatively.  Here  we  have  then  a method  of  procedure 
to  determine  the  purity  of  calcium  salts  of  phosphoric  acid. 
It  is  based  upon  a scientific  principle  and  should  prove 
applicable  (unless  there  are  some  substances  which  inter- 
fere with  these  reactions)  that  will  permit  of  its  use  in 
various  ivays  with  fertilizers,  plant  and  animal  tissue,  soils, 
chemicals,  etc.  It  gives  us  a foundation  for  determining 
the  presence  of  the  different  forms  of  calcium  phosphate, 
if  they  exist  as  such,  in  the  presence  of  each  other. 

Satisfied  that  mono,  and  dicalcium  phosphates  react  in 
the  presence  of  an  excess  of  ammonium  hydroxide  in  agree- 
ment with  the  equations  as  deduced,  we  have  then  a means 
to  test  the  purity  of  the  three  salts  of  calcium  phosphate. 

In  our  stock  of  chemicals  we  have  preparations  of 
monocalcium  phosphate  which  were  sold  to  us  as  C.P. 
goods,  Avhich  we  know  on  account  of  their  insolubility  in 
Avater  to  be  something  else  than  what  they  Avere  purported 
to  be.  In  addition  to  the  above  chemicals  Ave  have  both 
the.  mono  and  dicalcium  phosphates  in  bottles  labeled  “ana- 
lyzed” or  “standard  of  purity.”  These  last  tAvo  com- 
pounds of  calcium  phosphate  have  been  subjected  to 
analyses.  We  Avill  consider  first  the  monocalcium  phos- 
phate and  then  the  dicalcium  phosphate. 

Tavo  grams  of  monocalcium  phosphate  containing  one 
molecule  of  Avater  Avas  dissolved  in  water  containing  nitric 


8 


acid,  cooled  and  made  up  to  200  cc  volume.  After  having 
been  thoroughly  mixed  100  cc  aliquot  was  made  alkaline 
with  ammonium  hydroxide  and  then  thoroughly  stirred, 
diluted  to  175  cc,  stirred  again,  and  then  filtered  to  remove 
the  tricalcium  phosphate  formed.  The  precipitate  on  the 
filter  was  then  washed  with  cold  distilled  'water  until 
about  195  cc  of  filtrate  was  obtained.  Additional  water 
was  added  to  make  the  volume  equal  200  cc,  followed  by 
a thorough  shaking.  Aliquots  of  25  cc  each  were  drawn 
and  made  slightly  acid  with  nitric  acid  followed  by  heating 
to  65°  C,  when  an  excess  of  ammonium  molybdate  Avas 
added  to  cause  complete  precipitation.  After  digestion  the 
precipitate  of  yellow  phospho-niolybdate  Avas  recovered  and 
thoroughly  Avashed  with  cold  distilled  water.  The  phos- 
phoric acid  Avas  determined  Avith  sodium  hydroxide  accord- 
ing to  the  optional  method  p.  4 (B.  107).  Total  phosphoric 
acid  was  also  determined.  The  results  were  as  folloAvs: 


Per  cent  Total 

Per  cent  not 

Per  cent  Total 

Per  cent 

P2O5 

ppt.  P2O5 

P2O5  Calc 

.CaH4(P04)2H20 

from  not  ppt. 

Calc. 

Found  

52.13* 

( 33.436 

I 33.350 

50.09 

95.167 

Theoretical  

56.35 

37.57 

52.13 

100,000 

or  34.76t 

The  above  results  after  alloAving  for  excess  Avater  shoAV 
that  95.17%  is  pure  Ca  H4  (P04)2.  H2O  Avith  2.040  per  cent 
phosphoric  acid  in  some  other  form  as  Cas  (P04)2  (the 
difference  50.09  and  52.13  or  2.04),  multiplying  2.04  by 
2.183  (factor  for  Cas  (P04)2)  equals  4.455  per  cent  of  tri- 
calcium phosphate.  Calculating  all  of  the  phosphoric  acid 
present  in  combination  with  calcium  there  is  but  0.398  per 
cent  of  unaccounted  impurities  according  to  the  analysis. 

This  salt  contains  a slight  amount  of  insoluble  phos- 
phate Avhich,  Avhen  separated  and  tested,  shoAvs  it  to  be 
tricalcium  phosphate  and  not  dicalcium  phosphate. 

The  method  of  procedure  for  the  preparation  of  the 
dicalcium  phosphate  Avith  tAvo  molecules  of  Avater  Avas  the 
same  as  for  the  monocalcium  phosphate.  The  results  Avere 
as  follows : 


Per  cent  Total 

Per  cent  P205 

Per  cent  P205 

Per  cent 

P2O5 

not  ppt. 

Calc,  from  not  ppt. 

Ca2H2(P04)2 
.2H2O  Calc 

Found  

42.50 

^ 8.246 
} 8.220 

24.70 

59.845 

Theoretical  ... 

41.28 

13.76 

41.28 

100.000 

*Contaiiis  other  water  besides  water  of  molecular  combination 
which  when  corrected  for,  changes  the  results  to  55.59%. 
tWhen  based  on  total  PaO.r,  content  of  52.13%. 


9 


Based  upon  a phosphoric  acid  content  of  42.50%,  there 
is  only  59.85  per  cent  of  pure  Ca2H2  (P04)2.  2H2O,  with 
17.80%  phosphoric  acid  in  some  other  form  as  tricalcium 
phosphate.  Multiplying  17.8  by  2.183  equals  38.87  per  cent 
of  tricalcium  phosphate.  Calculating  all  of  the  phosphoric 
acid  present  in  combination  with  calcium,  there  is  1.287 
per  cent  of  other  forms  of  unaccounted  impurities  accord- 
ing to  the  analysis. 

This  salt  of  phosphoric  acid  did  not  contain  any  phos- 
phoric acid  which  was  soluble  in  water.  Consequently  it 
should  contain  either  the  di  or  tricalcium  phosphates,  or 
both  which  are  insoluble  in  water.  Upon  analysis  it  was 
found  to  contain  both  forms  which  are  insoluble  in  water. 

From  this  method  of  procedure  it  has  been  possible 
to  test  the  purity  of  both  mono  and  dicalcium  phosphates 
and  find  that  chemicals  are  not  necessarily  pure  because 
they  have  been  placed  in  bottles  as  ‘‘analyzed’’  or  “stand- 
ard of  purity.” 

Every  step  thus  far  points  to  the  fact  that  the  reac- 
tions as  formulated  are  correct,  and  this  is  particularly  em- 
phasized in  case  of  the  monocalcium  phosphate,  which  agrees 
close  enough  to  show  that  a combination  as  represented  by 
the  equations  can  only  take  place.  We  have  here  a means 
for  determining  the  purity  of  mono  and  dicalcium  phos- 
phates. Neither  one  of  the  two  chemicals  analyzed  are  of 
value  to  prove  that  reactions  take  place  in  the  manner 
deduced. 

The  first  chemical  contained  monocalcium  phosphate 
and  tricalcium  phosphate  but  no  dicalcium  phosphate.  The 
second  chemical  contained  both  the  di  and  tricalcium  phos- 
phates but  no  monocalcium  phosphate. 

Suppose  we  had  a chemical  containing  all  three,  the 
mono,  di,  and  tricalcium  phosphates.  Can  we  separate  them 
quantitatively  in  the  presence  of  each  other?  The  question 
has  been  answered  indirectly  in  connection  with  the  dis- 
cussion of  the  mono  and  dicalcium  phosphates.  The  mono- 
calcium phosphate  is  soluble  in  water,  while  the  di,  and 
tricalcium  phosphates  are  not,  consequently  if  we  deter- 
mine the  phosphoric  acid  in  all  of  the  water  soluble  or 
that  part  of  the  water  soluble  which  is  not  precipitated 
with  ammonium  hydroxide,  the  total  phosphoric  acid  sol- 
uble in  water  can  be  computed  from  the  data  obtained  in 
the  non-precipitated  phosphoric  acid.  Another  portion  of 
the  mixture  is  digested  with  nitric  acid  and  made  up  to 


10 


volume.  Aliquots  are  taken  for  both  the  total  and  that 
which  is  not  precipitated  by  animonium  hydroxide.  For 
the  latter  the  di?;solved  salt  is  made  alkaline  with  an  ex- 
cess of  ammonium  hydroxide,  filtered  and  the  preciioitate 
thoroughly  washed  with  water.  The  filtrate  is  then  slightly 
acidified  Avith  nitric  acid,  ammonium  molybdate  added  in 
excess,  etc.  The  amount  of  phosphoric  acid  found  in  the 
hltrate  contains  both  the  mono  and  dicalcium  phosphates 
not  precipitated  by  ammonium  hydroxide.  It  is  then  only 
a matter  of  computation  to  determine  the  amount  of  each. 
The  phosphoric  acid  found  in  the  Avater  soluble  not  pre- 
cipitated by  ammonium  hydroxide  is  subtracted  from  that 
found  in  hltrate  not  precipitated  by  ammonium  hydroxide 
after  digesting  the  material  in  nitric  acid.  This  quantity 
of  phosphoric  acid  multiplied  by  three  Avill  give  the  phos- 
phoric acid  present  in  the  dicalcium  phosphate,  and  that 
found  in  the  non-precipitated  ammonium  hydroxide  Avater- 
soluble  solution  divided  by  four  and  multiplied  .by  six  or 
multiplied  directly  by  one  and  one-half  (1.5)  Avill  give  the 
phosphoric  acid  present  in  the  monocalcium  phosphate. 
The  sum  of  the  phosphoric  acids  for  mono  and  dicalcium 
phosphates  subtracted  from  total  phosphoric  acid  is  the 
phosphoric  acid  in  combination  Avith  lime  to  form  trical- 
eium  phosphate.  The  data  obtained  for  the  total  and  non- 
precipitated  phosphoric  acids  computed  to  their  respective 
calcium  salts  should  equal  100%  after  alloAving  for  the 
Avater  in  molecular  combination  and  free  moisture.  The 
results  should  be  confirmed  by  determining  the  lime  con- 
tent. This  can  be  determined  in  the  i^recipitates  and  after 
making  the  jAroper  calculations  should  check  Avith  not  only 
the  total  calcium  iDresent  in  the  mixture,  but  also  Avith  the 
results  o])tained  for  lime  as  calculated  from  the  phosphoric 
acids  found  in  the  mono,  di,  and  tricalcium  phosphates. 

We  Avill  noAV  return  to  the  phosphate  fertilizer  Avhich 
Avas  represented  to  the  • Avriter  as  being  nearly  all  soluble 
in  ammonium  citrate. 

One  gram  of  the  fertilizer  Avas  digested  in  aqua  regia, 
diluted  Avith  Avater,  filtered  and  made  up  to  500  cc  volume. 
Aliquots  Avere  taken,  treated  Avith  ammonium  hydroxide 
and  filtered.  The  resulting  filti’ates  Avere  then  slightly  acidi- 
fied Avith  niti'ic  acid  and  treated  Avith  ammonium  molyb- 
date according  to  the  usual  method.  The  total  phosphoric 
acid  and  calcium  Avere  determined.  The  results  Avere  as 
folloAvs : 


11 


Per  cent  Total  Per  cent  Total  Per  cent  P205  Per  cent  P205  Calc,  as 
CaO  P2O5  not  ppt.  Ca2H2(P04)2 

44.7  29.07  none  none 

There  was  no  water-soluble  phosphoric  acid  in  this 
fertilizer,  consequently  no  monocalcium  phosphate  could  be 
present.  If  dicalcium  phosphate  Avas  present  we  should  have 
obtained  phosphoric  acid  that  was  not  precipitated  with 
ammonium  hydroxide.  The  excess  of  lime,  on  the  other 
hand,  shoAvs  at  a glance  that  the  lime  content  is  in  excess 
of  that  required  to  form  tricalcium  phosphate.  Perhaps 
the  compound  is  a tetra-calcium  phosphate  (Ca4  P2O9),  but 
Ave  find  upon  basis  of  phosphoric  acid  analysis  that  the  lime 
content  is  in  excess  of  that  required  to  form  this  comx^ound. 

The  question  is,  shall  Ave  regard  this  fertilizer  as  tri 
or  tetracalcium  phosphate?  AVith  reference  to  the  latter 
compound  there  is  some  dispute  as  to  Avhether  or  not  there 
is  such  a compound.  We  knoAv,  on  the  other  hand,  that 
tricalcium  phosphate  exists  and  this  is  probably  the  com- 
pound that  is  present  in  Basic-slag.  The  balance  of  the 
lime  Avould  then  be  in  some  other  combination  as,  e.  g., 
AAuth  silica  and  not  phosphoric  acid.  So  far  as  our  reac- 
tions are  concerned  the  lime  and  jjhosphoric  acid  are  pre- 
cipitated as  the  tricalcium  phosphate  Avith  ammonium  hy- 
droxide and  the  excess  of  lime  enters  into  the  filtrate  in 
the  method  described.  There  are  good  reasons  to  believe 
that  the  above  fertilizer  is  a fusion  of  tricalcium  phosphate 
and  lime,  AA^hich  through  the  process  has  been  modified  to 
give  an  increased  citrate  soluble  over  that  obtained  for 
tricalcium  phosphate  or  floats. 

The  statements  made  in  the  preceding  jAaragraph  lead 
us  to  more  interesting  ones  Avith  reference  to  commercial 
fertilizers  knoAAui  as  superiDhosphates,  reveitcd  phosphates, 
or  available  phosphates.  As  has  been  said  these  tAvo  foT*ms 
of  fertilizers  are  regarded  as  monocalcium,  and  dicalcium 
ph()sx)hatcs,  and  in  these  forms  are  considered  as  available 
phosphoric  'acid.  Let  us  consider  the  reactions  of  trical- 
cium phosphate  AAuth  sulfuric  acid. 

1.  Ca3(P04)2+3H2S04+6H20=80aS04.2H20+2H3P04. 

2.  Ca3(P04)2  + 2H2SO4+5H2O  = 2CaS04.2H20  + CaH4 
(P04)2.H20. 

3.  0a3(PO4)2+H2SO4+4H2O-=CaSO4.2H2O  +0a2H2(P04)2 
..2H2O. 

In  all  three  of  the  above  equations  avc  have  calcium 
sulfate,  the  amount  varying  in  i)roportion  to  the  amount 


12 


of  sulfuric  acid  used  in  the  equation.  Besides  gypsum 
there  is  either  phosphoric  acid,  or  mono,  or  dicalcium  ohp-s 
phate.  The  monocalcium  phosphate  in  the  presence  of  the 
gypsum  is  known  as  the  superphosphate,  while  the  dical- 
cium phosphate  in  the  presence  of  gypsum  is  known  as  the 
reverted  phosphoric  acid,  or  ammonium  citrate  soluble  phos- 
phoric acid.  The  superphosphate  is  soluble  in  water,  while 
the  reverted  is  not.  The  gypsum  is  practically  insoluble  in 
water.  Does  this  mean  anything?  Let  us  see!  The  tri- 
calcium phosphate  is  treated  with  sulfuric  acid  with  the 
purpose  in  vieAv  of  rendering  the  phosphoric  acid  in  tri- 
calcium  phosphate,  when  applied  to  the  soils,  more  readily 
available  as  a source  of  phosphorus  for  plants,  than  would 
be  possible  in  the  more  difficultly  soluble  forms  of  phos- 
phoric acid.  But  inasmuch  as  the  gypsum  is  not  separated 
from  the  mono,  or  dicalcium  phosphates  formed,  the  gyp- 
sum is  also  added  with  the  more  soluble  calcium  phosphate. 
From  this  point  it  will  be  necessary  to  digress  somewhat 
from  the  main  subject. 

The  exact  reactions  of  gypsum  in  soil  are  not  satis- 
factorily known,  but  are  believed  to  be  very  beneficial  in 
increasing  the  potash  content  available  for  crops,  perhaps 
in  a manner  something  like  this : 

Al203.K20.6Si02  + 0aS04.2H20+002  =-  K2SO4+AI2O3 
. 2Si02. 2H2O  A 4Si02+  OaOOs. 

This  effect  of  gypsum  appears  to  be  more  noticeable 
on  clay  than  on  sandy  soils. 

In  acid  soils,  applications  of  gypsum  are  considered 
undesirable,  because  it  tends  to  promote  an  increased  acid- 
ity, and  with  it,  increases  the  plant  food  to  quantities  that 
are  apt  to  be  carried  away  in  the  seepage  waters.  On  neu- 
tral soils,  gypsum  also  tends  to  make  the  soil  acid  and  the 
conditions  change  to  one  very  similar  to  that  just  explained 
for  the  acid  soils.  Owing  to  the  increased  acidity  resulting 
it  has  been  frequently  recommended  to  apply  calcium  car- 
bonate, or  calcium  hydroxide,  in  conjunction  with  super- 
phosphate to  overcome  the  acid  tendencies  of  gypsum.  The 
application  of  gypsum  to  soil,  unless  it  be  for  the  sulfur 
that  it  contains,  possesses  no  desirable  benefits  that  can 
not  also  be  ol)tained  from  applications  with  other  forms  of 
lime  on  acid  or  neutral  soils.  And  on  these  when  amply 
supi)lied  with  sulfur,  the  latter  form  of  lime  is  to  be  pre-‘ 
ferred.  Further  the  application  of  different  forms  of  lime 


IS 

phosphate  containing  gypsum  should  be  discouraged  rather 
than  encouraged. 

On  alkaline  soils,  those  that  contain  both  the  sodium 
bicarbonate  and  sodium  carbonate,  the  application  of  gyp- 
sum tends  to  overcome  the  alkaline  condition  forming  the 
calcium  carbonate  and  the  less  injurious  sodium  sulfate  as 
follows : 


0aS04+Na2003-=Na2S04+0a003. 

The  practice  of  applying  gypsum  to  alkaline  soils  has 
been  quite  extensive,  and  it  appears  that  since  gypsum  over- 
comes the  injurious  elfccts  of  black  alkali,  the  application 
of  superphosphate  would  be  more  desirable  on  alkaline  soils 
than  on  either  the  neutral  or  acid  reacting  ones.  But  we 
find  here  also  that  the  gypsum  tends  to  increase  the  dif- 
ferent forms  of  plant  food,  and  its  effect  then,  is  only  of 
a temporary  nature.  More  sodium  carbonate  is  formed  and 
more  gypsum  would  have  to  be  added.  We  are,  therefore, 
led  to  believe  that  the  application  of  superphosphates  on 
such  soils  does  not  have  any  material  advantage  that  can 
not  also  be  obtained  by  adding  the  gypsum  directly. 

On  the  other  hand,  where  the  soils  run  low  in  sulfur ; 
and  sulfur  is  considered  of  importance  to  plant  growth,  the 
addition  of  gypsum  will  overcome  the  deficiency  and  in  that 
way  be  of  direct  value  to  the  plants.  But  the  re- 
moval of  the  sulfur  in  gypsum  also  changes  the  form  of 
lime  and  we  have  nothing  left  in  gypsum  that  can  not  also 
be  obtained  by  the  addition  of  calcium  carbonate.  Where 
there  is  plenty  of  lime  in  the  soil,  sulfuric  acid  will  be 
equally  as  valuable  as  the  gypsum  and  can  be  applied  much 
cheaper. 

In  addition  to  the  above  facts  there  is  another  point 
with  reference  to  the  application  of  superphosphates  to  alka- 
line soils  that  must  not  be  overlooked,  viz.,  the  action  of 
the  sodium  carbonate,  just  as  in  the  case  with  the  ammo- 
nium hydroxide  reaction,  upon  the  superphosphate  chang- 
ing the  latter  from  the  water  soluble  to  the  water  insoluble 
or  to  tricalcium  phosphate  as  follows : 

2Na2003-+CaH4(P04)2.H20  + 20aS04.2H20=Oa3(P04)2+ 
2Na2S04+5H20-f2002. 

Under  this  condition  we  find  that  there  is  nothing 
gained  by  adding  a superphosphate  to  an  alkaline  soil  that 
can  not  also  be  accomplished  by  adding  tricalcium  phos- 


14 


pliate  and  gypsum  or  sulfuric  acid  independently  and  much 
cheaper. 

Let  us  now  return  to  the  neutral  soils  that  contain  cal- 
cium carbonate,  and  the  acid  soils  where  calcium  carbon- 
ate is  needed.  In  the  latter  case  it  is  inadvisable  to  add 
a superphosphate  and  increase  the  acidity.  To  overcome 
the  acidity,  the  cheapest  and  easiest  way  is  to  add  calcium 
carbonate. 

The  addition  of  calcium  carbonate  will  overcome  the 
acidity  and  make  the  acid  soil  neutral  and  from  this  point 
both  the  acid  and  neutral  soil  may  be  considered  from  the 
same  point  of  view.  The  application  of  superphosphate 
owing  to  its  gypsum  content  will  tend  to  make  the  soil 
acid  again.  This  is  objectionable  because  it  has  been  nec- 
essary to  add  calcium  carbonate  to  the  soil  to  overcome 
this  tendency.  If,  however,  there  has  been  applied  or  there 
is  ample  calcium  carbonate  present  in  the  soil  to  overcome 
any  immediate  tendencies  of  gypsum  to  change  the  soil  to 
acid,  we  must  not  overlook  the  fact  that  the  calcium  car- 
bonate will  react  with  the  monocalcium  phosphate  and 
change  it  to  the  less  soluble  calcium  phosphate.  For  mono- 
calcium  phosphate  the  reaction  may  be  expressed  as  follows : 

0aH4(P04)2  .H‘20+0a003--0a-2H2(F04)2.2H‘20+002 

This  reaction  takes  place  rather  rapidly.  But  since  su- 
perphosphate contains  both  gypsum  and  monocalcium  phos- 
phate there  will  be  naturally  a more  complicated  reaction 
in  the  soil,  perhaps  as  follows : 

0aH4(P04)2  .H20+0aS04  .2H20+0aC03  + AI2O3.  •K2O. 
()Si02  = Oa2H2  (P04)2  -.2H20  + OaOOs  + K2S04-f  Al203.28i02. 
2H20+4Si02 

If  the  dicalcium  phosphate  is  formed  in  the  soil  from 
monocalcium  phosphate  then  it  appears  as  reasonable  to 
believe  that  the  dicalcium  phosphate  is  transformed  into 
the  insoluble  • tricalcium  phosphate  as  follows  : 

Ca2H2(P04)2.2H20+0a003=0a3(  P04)2+002+3H20 

We  have  found  that  this  reaction  takes  place  much  more 
slowly  than  the  preceding  one,  but  in  the  soils,  in  conjunc- 
tion with  water,  the  reaction  takes  place  rapidly  because 
the  carbon  dioxide  is  readily  neutralized  by  basic  materials 
in  the  soil.  The  calcium  phosphate  not  changing  to  the  in- 
soluble forms  must  be  largely  lost  through  seepage,  etc. 


15 


Fertilizers  made  up  of  available  phosphoric  acid  whether 
in  the  presence  of  gypsum  or  not  tend  to  react  when  mixed 
with  tlie  soil  to  form  compounds  nioi-e  difficultly  soluble, 
as,  e.  g.,  tricalcium  phosphate,  and  that  the  artificial  fertil- 
izei's  can  not  he  considered  ti'uly  speaking  mono,  or  dical- 
ciuin  phosphates,  in  the  presence  of  gypsum,  but  rather 
sulfuric  acid  interchanging  with  phosphoric  acid  and  cal- 
cium. For  superphosphate  as  follows: 

Ca3(P04)2.4H3P04+60aS04.2H20-=3Ca3(P04)-2-b()H2  804+ 

I2H2O 

while  for  the  reverted  the  reaction  would  be: 

20a3rP04)2.H3P04+  3Ca804.2H20=-3Ca3(P04)2  + 3H28O4 
+ ()H20 

In  the  final  analysis  so  far  as  the  application  of  phos- 
pliate  fertilizers  to  the  soil  is  concerned,  we  should  only 
regard  them  as  tricalcium  phosphate.  This  is  emphasized 
from  the  undesirability  of  introducing  gypsum  on  acid,  neu- 
tral and  alkaline  soils,  and  that  the  calcium  phosphate  will 
change  to  the  tricaleium  phosphate  in  the  presence  of  cal- 
cium carbonate  and  particulai'ly  in  the  semi-arid  west,  espe- 
cially where  the  soils  have  been  formed  from  the  erosion 
of  basaltic  overflows.  The  reaction  of  superphosphate  and 
reverted  phosphoric  acid  with  alkali  shows  them  to  be  tri- 
calcium phosphate.  Further  Ave  knoAV  that  tricaleium  phos- 
phate is  available  to  the  plants. 

There  is  no  need  for  modifying  the  tricalcium  phos- 
phate other  than  reducing  it  to  suitable  fineness  to  offer  the 
largest . possible  surface  to  be  acted  upon  by  the  soil  and 
plant  solvents  in  the  soil. 

All  chemical  tests  of  phosphate  fer-tilizers  should  be  lim- 
ited to  the  analysis  of  the  total  phosphoric  acid  and  that 
Avhich  is  not  precipitated  Avith  alkali  such  as  ammonium 
hydroxide  and  not  hoAv  much  is  Avater,  or  ammonium  citrate 
soluble. 

This  brings  us  to  the  application  of  the  method  for 
estimating  the  different  forms  of  calcium  phosphate  and 
the  method  of  differentiation.  With  pure  calcium  phos- 
phates its  application  has  been  determined,  and  in  phos- 
phate fertilizers  or  other  phosphate  chemicals  Avhere  there 
is  an  excess  of,  say,  calcium,  it  is  questionable  Avhether  or 
not  a calcium  phosphate  could  exist  in  any  other  form  than 
that  Avhich  tends  to  be  most  stable.  In  ammonium  hy- 
droxide, superphosphate  is  only  stable  as  tricalcium  phos- 


16 


phate.  In  a similar  way  we  regard  the  iron  and  aluminum 
phosphates  to  be  more  stable  than  tricalcium  phosphate  and 
tricalcium  phosphate  is  certainly  more  stable  than  gypsum. 
We  will,  therefore,  consider  all  forms  of  calcium  phosphate 
in  sufficient  calcium  salts  existing  in  the  form  of  trical- 
cium phosphate,  consequently  any  phosphate  that  is  not 
precipitated  with  ammonium  hydroxide  must  be  regarded 
as  a part  of  either  mono,  or  dicalcium  phosphate,  or  some 
other  salt  of  phosphoric  acid. 

In  a few  of  the  soils  that  have  been  examined  in  our 
laboratory  with  water  and  weak  acid  solutions  there  ap- 
pears some  uncombined  phosphoric  acid.  But  when  these 
soils  are  boiled  with  water  to  expel  the  carbon  dioxide  or 
when  digested  with  strong  acid  such  as  nitric  acid  it  is 
found  that  all  of  the  phosphoric  acid  is  in  combination  in 
forms  that  are  precipitated  with  ammonium  hydroxide.  We 
must,  therefore,  conclude  so  far  as  the  soils  examined  are 
concerned  that  the  phosphates  are  in  very  stable  forms,  and 
not  as  mono,  or  dicalcium  phosphates. 

The  soils  that  have  been  examined  are  alkaline  in  na- 
ture, but  are,  nevertheless,  very  productive.  The  water  sol- 
uble phosphoric  acid  in  these  alkaline  soils  is  undoubtedly 
the  result  of  a series  of  changes  taking  place,  first  with  the 
sodium  carbonate,  and  then  with  the  sodium  bicarbonate  as 
follows : 

1.  Na2C03+H2003=2NaH003 

2.  2NaHC03+2H2C03+Ca3(P04)2=CaH4(F04)2.  H2O+ 
2Ca  C03+Na2C03+C02 

In  plant  and  animal  tissue,  if  phosphates  are  required 
in  larger  quantities  than  the  calcium  in  certain  parts  of  the 
structure,  it  is  possible  to  detect  and  determine  the  quan- 
tities and  the  possible  form  in  which  they  may  be  present 
in  the  different  parts  of  the  structure. 

In  soils,  plant  and  animal  tissue  besides  calcium,  we 
have  iron,  aluminum,  magnesium,  etc.,  to  contend  with,  and 
which  may,  depending  upon  the  amount  of  phosphoric  acid 
present,  be  in  combination  with  phosphoric  acid.  In  such 
a case  the  problem  of  differentiating  is  somewhat  complex. 

The  presence  of  monocalcium  or  other  water-soluble 
forms  of  phosphoric  acid  should  be  determined  in  the  fil- 
trates resulting  from  filtering  the  water  digested  material 
after  prolonged  boiling.  If  phosphoric  acid  is  present  in 
the  filtrates  after  following  the  above  treatment  the  nature 


17 


of  the  phosphate  must  be  determined.  If  it  exists  as  a cal- 
cium or  magnesium  phosphate  it  is  unquestionably  a mono- 
calcium or  magnesium  phosphate.  By  following  the  method 
outlined  for  the  calcium  phosphates,  not  only  the  calcium 
phosphate  can  be  determined  but  also  the  magnesium  phos- 
phate by  determining  the  calcium  and  magnesium  precipi- 
tated with  ammonium  hydroxide  and  the  phosphoric  acid 
in  the  resulting  filtrate. 

The  soil,  plant  or  animal  tissue  can  now  be  digested 
with  cold  nitric  acid  or  Avith  aqua  regia  over  a flame  and 
in  such  case  the  latter  Avould  also  contain  organic  phos- 
phorus as  phosphoric  acid.  In  such  a case  the  cold  nitric 
and  the  aqua  regia  digestions  should  give,  if  there  are  not 
substances  interfering,  differences  in  the  amount  of  phos- 
phorus Avhich  is  unquestionably  in  organic  form.  But  the 
difficulty  is  that  some  of  the  organic  phosphorus  may  be 
soluble  in  cold  nitric  acid  and  in  such  a case  the  problem 
is  not  at  all  simple. 

All  of  the  inorganic  phosphorus  should  be  soluble  in 
strong  cold  nitric  acid.  If  iron  and  aluminum  are  present 
in  large  quantities  and  the  phosphoric  acid  in  only  limited 
quantities,  the  phosphoric  acid  will  enter  in  combination 
with  the  iron  and  aluminum.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the 
phosphoric  acid  is  in  excess  of  that  required  to  satisfy  the 
iron  and  aluminum  the  excess  phosphoric  acid-  will  be  in 
combination  Avith  some  other  basic  material  such  as  cal- 
cium, magnesium,  etc.  The  method  for  the  differentiation 
of  the  phosphoric  acid  and  the  basic  materials  being  knoAvn 
the  nature  of  the  inorganic  phosphate  can  be  determined. 

Just  as  in  the  case  of  the  calcium  phosphates;  so  it  is 
also  possible  to  determine  the  different  salts  of  phosphoric 
acid  AAffiich  are  in  combination  Avith  sodium,  potassium,  etc., 
by  indirect  methods.  In  the  case  of  sodium  phosphate,  the 
phosphoric  acid  and  the  sodium  are  first  determined,  and 
then  calcium  equal  to  an  amount  necessary  to  replace  the 
sodium  AAffiich  AAms  in  combination,  is  added.  If  the  cal- 
cium combines  Avith  the  phosphoric  acid  and  the  mixture 
remains  soluble  it  is  a monosodium  phosphate,  which  can 
be  confirmed  by  precipitating  the  tricalcium  phosphate  with 
ammonium  hydroxide  and  determine  the  phosphoric  acid 
in  the  filtrate  Avhich  should  be  equal  to  two-thirds  of  the 
total  phosphoric  acid  present  in  the  salt.  If  the  salt  is  a 
disodium  salt  of  phosphoric  acid,  the  addition  of  the  sodium 
equivalent  in  calcium  Avill  form  the  insoluble  calcium  phos- 
phate Avhich  AAffien  treated  with  ammonium  hydroxide  will 


18 


form  tricalciuin  phosphate  and  ammoninm  phosphate.  The 
phosphoric  acid  in  the  filtrate  would  be  equal  to  one-third 
of  all  of  the  phosphoric  acid  present  in  the  sodium  phos- 
phate. In  case  of  the  trisodium  phosphate  and  its  sodium 
equivalent  in  calcium,  no  phosphoric  acid  would  be  found 
in  the  filtrate  after  the  addition  of  ammonium  hydroxide. 

CONCLUSIONS 

1.  Ammonium  citrate  acts  upon  tricalcium  phosphate 
as  well  as  dicalcium  phosphate.  The  method  in  use  is 
wholly  empirical  and  does  not  separate  the  dicalcium  phos- 
phate from  tricalcium  phosphate. 

2.  Substances  soluble  in  ammonium  citrate  are  not  nec- 
essarily mono  and  dicalcium  phosphate,  but  also  tricalcium, 
iron,  and  aluminum  phosphates. 

3.  Ammonium  citrate  soluble  is  not  a measure  of  the 
phosphoric  acid  contained  in  a fertilizer  available  for  plants. 

4.  If  it  is  desirable  to  estimate  the  mono,  di,  and  tri- 
calcium phosphates,  this  can  be  done  in  a scientific  manner 
bj^  dissolving  the  substance  in  nitric  acid  and  precipitating 
the  solution  with  ammonium  hydroxide.  For  the  monocal- 
cium phosphate  two-thirds  of  the  phosphoric  acid  will  be 
present  in  the  filtrate  and  for  the  dicalcium  phosphate  one- 
third  the  phosphoric  acid  will  be  present  in  the  filtrate. 
Upon  these  bases  the  three  forms  of  calcium  phosphate  can 
be  differentiated  and  determined  quantitatively  in  the  pres- 
ence of  each  other. 

5.  The  ammonium  hydroxide  method  is  applicable  for 
the  testing  of  the  purity  of  phosphate  chemicals.  It  can 
also  be  applied  to  differentiate  between  the  different  forms 
of  phosphoric  acid  that  may  be  present  in  soils,  plant,  and 
animal  tissue. 

6.  Indirectly,  by  adding  the  equivalent  of  a base  with 
calcium  the  different  forms  of  phosphate  salts  can  be  de- 
termined. 

7.  In  soil  mono  and  dicalcium  phosphates  tend  to  re- 
act, forming  tricalcium  phosphate.  There  is  then  nothing 
to  be  gained  by  applying  either  superphosphate  or  reverted 
phosphoric  acid  to  soil. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


Report  on  Fires  Occuring  in  Threshing 
Separators  in  Eastern  Washington 
During  the  Summer  of  1914 

By 

Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Director  of  Experiment  Station 
0.  L.  Waller,  Professor  of  Civil  Engineering 
H.  V.  Carpenter,  Professor  of  Mechanical  and 
Electrical  Engineering 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  Experiment  Station  Chemist 
E.  G.  Schafer,  Professor  of  Farm  Crops 
A.  L,  Sherman,  Asst.  Chemist 


BULLETIN  NO.  117 
November  3,  1914 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


D,  S.  TROY,  President Chimaeuni 

dA8.  C.  CUNNINGHAM,  Vice-President Spokane 

E.  A.  BRYAN,  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

President  of  the  College 

R.  C.  McCROSKEY Garfield 


STATION  STAFF 


IRA  L).  CARDIFF,  Ph.  I) 

ELTON  FULMER,  M.  A 

S.  B.  NELSON,  1).  V.  M 

O.  L.  WALLER,  Ph.  M 

A.  L.  MELANDER,  Sc.  D 

O.  M.  MORRIS,  B.  S 

GEO.  W.  SEVERANCE,  B.  S 

C.  C.  THOM,  M.  S 

A.  B.  NYSTROM,  M.  S 

GEO.  A.  OLSON,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S. 

W.  T.SHAW,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S 

.1.  G.  HALL,  M.  A 

E.  G.  SCHAFER,  M.  S 

WM.  HI  SLOP,  M.  S 

C.  A.  MAGOON,  M.  A 

J.  W.  KALKUS,  1).  V.  S 

M.  A.  YOTHERS,  B.  S 

HENRY  F.  HOLTZ,  B.  S 

E.  F.  GAINES,  B.  S 

C.  F.  MONROE,  B.  S.  A 

C.  B.  SPRAGUE,  B.  S 

D.  C.  GEORGE,  B.  S 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN 

F.  W.  ALLEN,  M.  S 

ELLA  W.  BROCK 

A.  L.  SHERMAN,  B.  S 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Veterinarian 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandtnan 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Plant  Pathologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Assistant  Cerealist 

Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  in  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Executive  Clerk 

Assistant  Chemist 


Report  on  Fires  Occurring  in  Threshing 
Separators  in  Eastern  Washington 
During  the  Summer  of  1914. 


By 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Director  of  Experiment  Station 
0.  L.  Waller,  Professor  of  Civil  Engineering 
H.  V.  Carpenter,  Professor  of  Mechanical  and 
Electrical  Engineering 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  Experiment  Station  Chemist 
E.  G.  Schafer,  Professor  of  Farm  Crops 
A.  L.  Sherman,  Asst.  Chemist 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  great  area  of  inti'r-niouiitain  country  cotiiprisiug 
Eastern  Wnsliington,  Ensic'rn  Oi'C'gon  and  Northern  Idalio 
is  an  agiacultural  r(‘gion  ])(‘cnlinrly  {ulapt(Ml  to  v/lunit  rais- 
ing. Tlie  annual  production  for  this  distinct  will  average 
close  to  50,000,000  husluds,  or  nlinost  one-t(‘nth  of  the  wlnnit 
production  of  the  whoh'  United  States.  Failures  in  this 
cro])  in  the  district  inentioiu'd  are  practically  unknown.  The 
chief  fluctuation  in  the  croj)  is  ])roduc(al  by  lightiu*  rains 
certain  S(‘asons  in  some  of  the  dricn*  ])ortions  of  the  district 
and  the  presence  of  the  stinking  smut  (TilhTia  tritici  (Benj.) 
Wint.).  in  the  highei*  altitudes. 

Occurrence  of  Fires. 

The  season  of  1014  promised  to  be  an  unusually  good 
one  for  wheat  ])roduction.  Bumjan*  crops  w(U‘e  th<‘  ])i‘os- 
p(‘cts  throughout  th(‘  entir(‘  district.  With  the  opi'uing  of  th(‘ 
thr(‘shing  season  about  duly  1st,  lioAveviu*,  sc'rious  difficulty 
was  at  once  encountered.  Throughout  that  portion  of  the 
tei'i'itory  occu])ied  by  Whitman  County,  Wash  in  g1  on,  nnd 
])ortions  of  the  neighboring  counties,  there  occurrial  nu- 
mei'ous  fii-es,  or  what  were  commonly  terimal  exjilosions  in 


2 


threshing  separators.  These  increased  in  frequency  as  the 
threshing  season  got  under  way  until  it  was  no  uncommon 
thing  to  have  a report  of  six  to  eight  of  these  fires  per 
day.  The  nature  of  the  fires,  that  is,  their  sudden  and 
almost  explosive  character,  caused  them  to  be  termed  ex- 
plosions and  was  also  responsible  for  a very  prevalent  belief 
that  they  were  due  to  incendiarism.  These  fires  increased 
in  frequency  and  destructiveness  until  near  the  end  of  the 
threshing  season  about  September  1st.  They  usually  ap- 
peared to  originate  in  the  threshing  separator  at  or  just 
back  of  the  cylinder,  and  within  two  or  three  seconds  the 
entire  separator  would  be  a mass  of  flames,  so  hot  that  it 
prevented  the  approach  of  workmen  and  very  soon  resulted 
in  the  complete  destruction  of  the  machine,  the  fire  usually 
spreading  to  the  straw  pile  and  frequently  to  the  threshed 
grain  and  also  the  unthreshed  grain  in  the  surrounding  fields. 
In  a number  of  cases  workmen  were  seriously,  injured  usu- 
ally by  fire,  though  in  a few  cases  by  the  force  of  the  ex- 
plosion. 

When  these  fires  occurred,  of  course,  it  necessitated  the 
immediate  purchase  of  a new  separator  at  a cost  of  from 
$1200  to  $1500.  Conservative  estimates  place  the  number  of 
these  fires,  or  so-called  explosions,  for  this  district  during 
the  past  season  at  very  close  to  300.  Calculating  loss  of 
machinery,  loss  of  both  threshed  and  unthreshed  grain,  loss 
of  time  and  injury  to  men,  the  total  would  doubtless  con- 
siderably exceed  half  a million  dollars  for  the  season. 

It  has  been  the  habit  of  practically  all  machine  owners 
to  carry  insurance  on  their  outfits.  With  the  occurrence  of 
fires  during  the  season  in  question  practically  all  insur- 
ance companies  cither  cancelled  their  insurance  or  refused 
to  insure  new  machines  when  purchased  for  work  in  this 
region,  thus  inflicting  a heavier  loss  than  otherwise  upon 
the  machine  owners. 

Scope  of  Investigation. 

At  the  outset  of  the  trouble  the  State  College  detailed 
a numbei*  of  members  from  its  scientific  staff'  to  investigate 
the  mattei*.  These  investigations  were  carried  on  more  or 
less  continuously  for  upwards  of  two  months  by  Vice  Presi- 
dent AValler,  Professors  Carpenter,  Olson,  Schafer,  Mr.  Sher- 
man and  Director  Cardiff.  Investigations  were  carried  on 
both  in  the  field  and  laboratory.  A searching  investigation 
was  conducted  in  regard  to  the  distribution  of  these  fires, 
the  date  at  which  they  occuri'ed,  the  time  of  day,  the  make 


3 


of  machines  in  which  they  occurred,  the  speed  of  the  cylin- 
der, the  character  of  the  grain  and  the  quantity  of  smut, 
also  the  character  of  the  oil  used.  Samples  of  wheat  and 
straw  were  collected  and  analyses  made  for  moisture  con- 
tent and  this  was  compared  with  that  of  previous  years. 
Numerous  devices  invented  by  machine  owners  for  pre- 
venting or  controling  fires  were  investigated.  Competent 
detectives  were  employed  to  investigate  the  question  of  in- 
cendiarism. In  fact,  the  investigation  was  made  as  search- 
ing and  thoro  as  time  and  means  would  permit. 

Approximately  60  machines  where  fires  occurred  were 
visited  in  person  and  carefully  investigated  from  all  the 
above  mentioned  standpoints.  The  opinions  of  the  machine 
owners  and  the  workmen  were  also  solicited  and  recorded. 
These  opinions  were  carefully  considered  and  the  various 
men  were  questioned  closely  for  evidence  supporting  their 
opinions.  With  reference  to  the  latter  it  was  apparent  from 
the  beginning  of  the  investigation  that  the  farmers  and  ma- 
chine owners  were  about  equally  divided  in  their  opinions 
as  to  the  cause  of  the  trouble  between  two  theories;  one 
incendiarism,  and  the  other  smut  (stinking  smut  of  wheat, 
Tilletia  tritici). 

It  should  be  stated  at  the  outset  that  such  fires  have 
occurred  in  the  wheat  belt  previous  to  this  year,  though  very 
much  less  numerous,  there  rarely  occurring  more  than  half 
a dozen  to  a dozen  in  the  three  northwestern  states  annu- 
ally. Heretofore  such  fires  have  usually  been  attributed  to 
smut  and  commonly  have  been  called  “smut  explosions.” 

Incendiarism. 

The  frequency  of  the  fires  the  present  season  has  led 
many  farmers  to  conclude  that  smut  could  not  alone  be  re- 
sponsible as  smut  had  been  as  prevalent  other  years  as  the 
one  in  question,  and  it  was  also  found  that  these  fires 
occurred  in  grain  with  5 or  10%  of  smut  as  well  as  in  grain 
with  three  or  four  times  this  amount  of  smut.  This  nat- 
urally led  to  the  incendiarism  theory.  As  a result  of  this 
several  arrests  were  made  of  parties  variously  accused  of 
setting  fires  or  placing  matches  or  explosives  of  various  kinds 
in  the  unthreshed  grain.  In  one  case  one  of  the  accused 
party  arrested  confessed  to  having  placed  matches  in  the 
shocks.  The  individual  in  question  was  arraigned  before 
the  court  of  Latah  County,  Idaho,  pled  guilty  and  received 
sentence.  After  being  sentenced,  however,  he  stoutly  repudi- 
ated his  entire  confession  and  claimed  that  he  knew  nothing 


4 


at  all  about  the  fires  or  their  cause,  stating  that  he  only 
confessed  because,  being  an  Indian  (he  was  a' half-breed), 
he  “knew  he  would  stand  no  show  in  the  court,”  and  there- 
fore confessed  to  get  a light  sentence.  As  stated  above  com- 
petent detectives  were  employed  to  investigate  this  phase 
of  the  question  and,  Avhile  the  details  of  their  work  need  not  be 
here  discussed,  it  can  be  very  positively  stated  that  no  con- 
clusive evidence  whatsoever,  either  through  detectives  or 
other  sources,  has  been  presented  to  bear  out  the  theory  of 
incendiarism. 

Methods  Adopted  for  Combating  or  Preventing  Fires. 

Several  machine  owners,  acting  upon  the  theory  that 
the  fires  Avere  caused  by  smut,  tried  to  prevent  the  same 
by  the  introduction  of  live  steam  into  the  separator.  The 
College  generally  favored  this  plan  for  a time  and  advised 
its  adoption.  It  also  constructed  and  attached  to  a number 
of  machines  an  outfit  for  carrying  steam  from  the  engine 
to  the  separator  and  distributing  it  throughout  the  sepa- 
rator for  this  purpose.  This  method  of  combating  the 
fires  was  adopted  on  the  theory  that  the  smut-air  mixture 
could  be  made  much  less  explosive  by  the  addition  of  moist- 
ure, since  Avhen  steam  condenses  it  always  forms  drops  on 
any  dust  particles  which  may  be  near.  This  makes  the 
steam  act  of  its  own  account  at  the  exact  point  Avhere  it 
Avas  needed.  It  Avas  hoped  that  the  moisture  and  steam 
Avould  help  in  reducing  the  combustibility  of  the  air-dust 
mixture  and  also,  by  increasing  its  powers  of  conduction, 
thus  serving  more  easily  to  conduct  off  any  static  electricity 
Avhich  might  be  the  cause  of  the  explosions. 

After  considerable  experimenting  it  was  concluded  that 
either  live  steam  or  exhaust  steam  would  Avork  equally  Avell 
for  this  purpose,  though  as  a matter  of  practice  it  Avas  found 
that  most  engineers  preferred  to  supply  the  live  steam  since' 
a smaller  pipe  line  could  be  used,  thus  lessening  the  trouble 
in  moving.  The  steam  Avas  usually  conducted  from  the  en- 
gine to  the  separator  by  a three-quarter  inch  pipe  Avith  flex- 
ible hose  connections.  A pipe  Avas  put  into  the  separator 
parallel  to  the  cylinder  shaft,  Avith  a roAv  of  holes  (about 
8 in.  apart  and  each  3-32  of  an  inch  in  diameter),  so  placed 
as  to  direct  the  steam  into  the  grain  just  as  it  strikes  the 
cylinder.  To  this  arrangement  was  usually  added  a sprinkler 
system  so  arranged  that  by  opening  a valve  at  the  sepa- 
rator and  another  at  the  boiler  Avater  from  the  boiler  could 
be  forced  in  a spray  all  through  the  separator  very  quickly. 


5 


The  latter  arrangement  was  to  be  used  only  in  case  of  fire 
in  the  separator.  The  introduction  of  steam  into  the  work- 
ing separator  did  not  act  as  a certain  preventive  for  fires 
since  some  fires  occurred  in  separators  in  which  this  system 
was  used.  It  also,  of  course,  increased  the  amount  of  fuel 
necessary  at  the  engine.  The  latter  fact,  however,  was  not 
of  serious  consequence  since  straw  was  used  for  fuel.  It 
simply  entailed  more  work  on  the  part  of  the  fireman. 

In  a few  other  cases  machine  owners  and  farmers  adopt- 
ed other  precautions  in  order  to  lessen  danger  from  fire, 
chiefly  by  arrangements  for  attaching  the  separator  quickly 
to  the  engine  by  means  of  a long  cable  so  that  it  could  be 
quickly  pulled  away  from  the  straw  stack,  or  by  keeping 
a certain  number  of  chemical  fire  extinguishers,  or  a supply 
of  water  near  the  separator.  In  a great  many  cases,  how- 
ever, none  of  the  above  precautions  or  any  others  were 
taken  to  prevent  losses,  the  general  attitude  being  that  it 
was  preferable  to  gamble  on  the  chance  of  no  fire.  The 
attitude  of  machine  owners  in  regard  to  this  matter,  how- 
ever, changed  somewhat  as  the  season  progressed. 

Relative  Humidity  and  Per  Cent  Moisture  in  Grain 
and  Smut. 

For  the  sake  of  comparisons  the  July  and  August  rec- 
ords for  relative  humidity  as  reported  for  the  past  five-year 
period  by  the  Walla  Walla  and  Spokane  Observatories,  have 
been  incorporated.  The  U.  S.  observations  were  made  at 
5 A.  M.  and  5 P.  M. 

TABLE  I. 

Average  Morning  and  Evening  Per  Cent  of  Moisture 
for  July  and  August. 


Walla 

Walla 

Spokane 

July 

August 

July 

August 

1909 

A. 

M. 

56.5 

48.2 

72.5 

50.0 

P. 

M. 

25.5 

16.8 

33.6 

18.4 

1910 

A. 

M. 

44.8 

48.1 

51.3 

56.5 

P. 

M. 

15.7 

18.9 

18.6 

22.3 

1911 

A. 

M. 

41.0 

45.5 

57.6 

73.7 

P. 

M. 

15.5 

20.3 

21.3 

31.9 

1912 

A. 

M. 

54.6 

58.0 

74.3 

74.5 

P. 

M. 

26.1 

32.8 

33.6 

36.6 

1913 

A. 

M. 

51.5 

46.2 

72.0 

69.4 

P. 

M. 

20.5 

23.8 

25.7 

28.2 

1914 

A. 

M. 

48.5 

42.3* 

62.6 

54.1 

P. 

M. 

20.7 

16.7* 

21.9 

17.1 

Lowest  P.  M. 

Av. 

15.5 

16.7 

18.6 

17.1 

Lowest  P.  M.  average  for  Pullman  the  present  season  was:  July  18.8 
August  15.0. 

*11  days. 


6 


The  average  relative  humidities  observed  at  5 P.  M.  at 
both  Walla  Walla  and  Spokane  for  August  of  this  year  are 
the  lowest  of  any  recorded  for  the  past  six  years  at  the 
respective  places.  It  is  reasonable  to  believe  that  the  local 
relative  humidity  is  as  low,  if  not  lower,  than  that  for  pre- 
ceding years. 

Without  rain  and  with  the  per  cent  of  atmospheric 
moisture  exceptionally  low,  there  has  been  a tendency  to 
rapidly  reduce  the  per  cent  of  moisture  in  the  grain  and 
particularly  in  wheat,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  following 
data  : 

TABLE  II. 


Per  Cent  Moisture  in  1914  Grain. 


Place 

Geo.  Miller’s  

H.  H.  Curtis’  

W.  L.  Morris’  

S.  S.  Sugart’s  

Ella  Strupler’s  

Geo.  Miller’s  (straw) 


Per  Cent  Moisture 

2.30 

3.73 

4.66 

5.41 

1.80 

3.75 


Average  (grain)  3.58 

The  amount  of  moisture  found  in  the  wheat  this  year 
is  the  lowest  that  is  on  record  for  this  department.  To  the 
writers’  knowledge  it  is  the  lowest  on  record  anywhere.  The 
lowest  previously  noted  was  6.17%.  The  average  moisture 
content  for  six  years  was  9.98%. 

Several  samples  of  smut  balls  were  also  analyzed  for 
their  moisture  content,  with  the  following  results : 

TABLE  III. 


Per  Cent  Moisture  in  Smut  Balls. 


Owner  of  Machine 

S.  Palmatier  

E.  E.  Snyder 

W.  W.  Kobertson  . 
Ella  Simpler  


Per  Cent  Moisture 

3.60 

4.80 

5.00 

7.49 


Average  5.22 

Pure  smut  4.48 


The  amount  of  moisture  found  in  samples  of  smut  was 
somewhat  higher  than  was  observed  in  case  of  the  samples 
of  wheat.  With  the  exception  of  the  sample  containing 
7.49%  water,  these  results  are  low  in  moisture  content. 

The  unusually  dry  season  with  a relatively  low  per 
cent  of  moisture  in  the  atmosphere,  together  with  an  abnor- 
mally low  per  cent  of  moisture  in  the  grain  and  smut  have 


7 

been  favorable  for  both  conflagration  and  machine  explo- 
sions. 

Flash  Tests  of  Oils  and  Greases. 

It  is  not  uncommon  to  find  men  who  believe  that  the 
cause  for  separator  fires  or  explosions  are  due  to  the  oils 
used  as  lubricants.  Poor  grades  of  oil  and  hot  boxes  might 
be  a possibility,  but  definite  information  that  hot  boxes  pre- 
ceded a fire  or  explosion  are  wanting.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  is  easy  to  determine  whether  or  not  the  lubricants  that 
are  used  are  safe  by  determining  the  flashing  points.  This 
had  been  done  and  the  temperature  at  which  the  oils  flashed 
have  been  recorded  and  are  approximately  correct  for  this 
elevation. 

TABLE  IV. 

Flashing  Points  of  Oils  and  Greases. 


Where  Taken 

Type  of  Oil 

Flashing  Point 
(Fahrenheit) 

t Pullman  

*Castor  

284° 

< ( 

Cylinder  

above  518 

1 1 

374 

i ( 

311 

Strevy ’s  

Morris  ’ 

Machine  

473 

Grease  

356 

Strevy ’s  

Grease  

347 

Pullman  

437 

( ( 

Grease  

410 

( ( 

B.  Valve  

401 

Torpy’s  

374 

Pullman  

609 

Torpy’s  

374 

As  will  be  seen  from  the  date  recorded  in  Table  IV, 
the  lowest  flashing  point  was  obtained  in  case  of  a machine 
castor  oil  (284°  P.).  This  was  evidently  a light  grade  ma- 
chine castor  oil.  A medium  grade  machine  castor  oil  flashed 
at  311°  F.  The  highest  temperature  (609°  F.)  at  which  an 
oil  flashed  was  in  case  of  a cylinder  oil  obtained  in  one  of 
the  stores  in  Pullman.  The  samples  of  oil  which  were  used 
on  separators  had  high  flashing  points  and  were  satisfac- 
tory for  use  on  separators.  All  of  the  oils  under  test  had 
sufficiently  high  flashing  points  and  cannot  therefore  be 
associated  even  as  a possibility  with  the  fires  which  originated 
in  the  separators. 


Machine  Castor’’ — An  oil  compounded  of  castor  oil  and  petro- 
leum oils. 

tMany  of  these  oils  were  collected  from  machine  owners  and  in  a 
number  of  instances  it  was  not  possible  to  ascertain  make  of  oil,  except  that 
they  were  purchased  in  Pullman. 


8 


Influence  of  Steam  on  Appearance  and  Quality  of 
Grain. 

Early  in  the  threshing  season  at  the  suggestion  of  the 
College  a number  of  machines  were  equipped  with  steam 
sprayers.  It  was  claimed  by  some  that  steamed  grain  was 
difficult  to  clean;  that  it  was  ruined  for  milling  purposes, 
and  that  it  had  lost  its  vitality.  The  following  results  bear 
upon  this: 

TABLE  V. 


Per  Cent  Moisture  in  Shocked  and  Threshed 
Grain  Compared. 


Per  Cent 


Owner  of  Separator  Shocked 

McAlpine  Bros 2.30 

A.  D.  Carnegie  3.73 

W.  L.  Morris  4.66 

S.  S.  Suggart  5.41 


Moisture 

Threshed 

6.60 

4.12 

5.12* 

5.78 


The  methods  of  sampling  that  had  to  be  followed  were 
not  scientifically  correct  and  can  only  be  considered,  there- 
fore, approximately  correct.  The  fact  that  the  grain  coming 
out  of  the  separators  without  exception  contained  more 
water  than  was  found  to  be  present  in  the  samples  taken 
from  the  shocks  indicates  that  the  steam  and  water  in- 


jected into  the  separator  was  partly  absorbed  by  the  grain. 
The  increased  amount  of  moisture  which  the  grain  absorbed 
was  even  under  this  condition  below  the  average  water  con- 
tent of  wheat  observed  in  preceding  years. 

In  the  following  table  the  results  for  per  cent  yield  of 
flour,  bran  and  shorts,  wet  and  dry  gluten  are  recorded. 


TABLE  VI. 

Milling  and  Gluten  Content  of  Shocked  Grain  as  Compared 
with  Steamed  Grain. 

From  Shock  From  Separator 


Per  cent  flour  72.6  74.4 

“ bran  and  shorts 27.4  26.8 

“ “ wet  gluten  22.7  24.1 

“ “ dry  gluten  8.1  8.4 


Eliminating  a questionable  point,  it  cannot  be  said  that 
the  grain  had  in  any  way  been  damaged  by  steam  so  far 
as  the  milling  qualities  are  concerned. 

Samples  of  steamed  wheat  tested  from  95  to  98%  germ- 
ination and  were,  therefore,  not  noticeably  affected  by  the 
steam  injected  into  the  separators. 


Water  poured  on  material  entering  separator. 


9 


In  past  years  it  has  rarely  been  the  case  that  the  number 
of  cracked  kerne] s exceeded  one-half  per  cent,  but  this  year 
it  has  been  found  that  from  7.0  to  over  20.0  per  cent  of  the 
wheat  has  been  cracked.  This  cracking  of  kernels  may  have 
been  due  to  several  causes : first,  the  dry  and  brittle  condi- 
tion of  the  wheat;  second,  the  cylinder  teeth  in  some  cases 
may  have  run  too  close  to  the  concave  teeth ; third,  the 
speed  of  the  cylinders  may  have  been  too  high. 

SMUT. 

Naturally  the  smut  came  in  for  a considerable  amount 
of  investigation  and  in  the  chemical  laboratories  of  the  Ex- 
periment Station  investigations  were  conducted  with  refer- 
ence to  the  composition  and  combustibility  of  smut. 

Composition  of  Smut. 

Besides  the  moisture  content,  fat,  ash,  crude  fiber,  vola- 
tile matter,  fixed  carbon  and  nitrogen  were  determined  in 
pure  smut  with  the  following  results: 

TABLE  VII. 

Composition  of  Smut. 


Moisture  4.48% 

Fat  0.89-  1.06% 

Fat  after  thorough  grinding  with  quartz 4.20% 

Nitrogen  2.87% 

Crude  fiber  64.75% 

Ash  3.66% 

Nitrogen  free  extract 18.81-18.98% 


There  was  but  0.24  per  cent  alcohol  soluble  nitrogen 
and  no  gluten  present,  indicating  that  there  was  very  little 
foreign  material  other  than  smut  analyzed.  The  use  of  the 
microscope  also  showed  the  specimens  to  be  comprised  of 
smut  grains,  all  of  which  were  intact. 

That  the  composition  of  smut  is  not  very  different  from 
other  known  inflammable  and  explosive  organic  materials 
can  be  seen  from  the  data  on  the  composition  of  such  ma- 
terials taken  from  Bulletin  No.  50,  Bureau  of  Mines,  United 
States  Department  of  Interior,  compared  with  the  results 
obtained  for  pure  smut. 

TABLE  VIII. 

Volatile  and  Fixed  Carbon  in  Various  Substances. 

Lyeo- 


Smut 

Flour 

Oak  Dust 

Starch 

podium 

Per 

cent 

moisture  

4.48 

11.09 

3.22 

14.58 

2.04 

< < 

1 i 

volatile  matter  

76.67 

63.58 

77.05 

70.21 

87.39 

i ( 

( ( 

fixed  carbon  

12.18 

24.90 

16.56 

14.87 

8.98 

i i 

( ( 

ash  

3.66 

0.43 

3.17 

0.34 

1.59 

10 


According  to  the  analyses  recorded  in  Table  VIII  one 
would  expect  to  find  that  smut  is  as  explosive  as  any  of 
the  other  substances  which  have  been  analyzed,  the  explosi- 
bility  of  which  is  determined. 

Experiments  on  the  Inflammability  or  Explosibility 
of  Pure  Smut. 

In  this  investigation  an  open  cylinder  was  used.  Within  ^ 

the  cylinder  a small  gas  flame  was  adjusted  so  that  it  would  1 

ignite  the  smut  when  forced  through  the  cylinder.  For  the  j 

latter  arrangement  a funnel  to  hold  the  smut  and  an  air  • 

bellows  to  blow  the  smut  through  the  cylinder  was  used. 

The  inflammability  of  the  smut  was  compared  with  flour 
and  starch  and  in  one  instance  approximately  1-2  gram  or 
1-50  of  an  ounce  of  smut  formed  a conical  flame  six  inches 
at  bottom,  two  feet  at  top  and  approximately  five  feet  high. 

In  most  of  the  experiments  the  height  varied  from  two  to  : 

three  feet.  The  inflammability  of  smut  was  in  all  cases  ; 

very  great  and  exceeded  that  of  any  other  organic  dust.  ’ 

Under  ordinary  conditions  where  smut  has  gathered  in 
large  quantities  the  smut  is  not  easily  inflammable,  neither 
is  flour.  Under  other  conditions  when  the  smut  is  well  dis- 
tributed or  caused  to  float  it  ignites  very  readily  and  in 
these  cases  there  must  always  be  a good  supply  of  air.  With 
a large  supply  of  air  surrounding  the  particles  of  smut 
there  is  always  danger  of  conflagration  or  explosion. 

The  source  of  the  ignition  of  smut  in  separators  has  not 
been  definitely  proven.  There  are  several  theories  ad- 
vanced. One  is  the  striking  of  the  teeth  of  the  cylinder 
with  the  teeth  on  the  concaves,  or  other  metallic  or  hard 
substance  capable  of  giving  off  sparks.  Another  is  the  dis- 
charge of  static  electricity  and  the  third  has  been  attributed 
to  incendiary  causes.  The  first  of  these  is  untenable,  as 
it  has  been  proven  that  such  sparks  are  not  hot  enough 
to  ignite  air  gas  mixtures,  and  no  conclusive  evidence 
has  yet  been  adduced  in  support  of  the  theory  of  in- 
cendiarism. 

In  our  experiments  it  has  been  impossible  to  ignite  the 
smut  with  a piece  of  glowing  charcoal.  It  appears  that  a 
flame  or  electric  spark  is  necessary  for  the  ignition. 

Investigations  upon  the  possibility  of  ignition  of  air- 
smut  mixture  from  electric  sparks  were  conducted  with  the 
above  mentioned  apparatus.  Substituting  an  electric  spark 
for  the  flame  in  question  it  was  found  that  a spark  of  static 
electricity  very  readily  ignited  the  smut-air  mixture  pro- 


11 


ducing  the  same  type  of  explosion  as  with  the  flame.  This 
was  possible  even  though  the  electric  spark  was  rather  small. 
Therefore,  the  elimination  of  the  static  electric  sparks,  which 
seem  to  be  always  present  in  the  cylinder,  would  remove  one 
possible  source  of  the  trouble.  A number  of  machines  have 
been  grounded  by  wires  leading  from  the  cylinder  boxes, 
etc.,  to  the  ground,  but  an  examination  shows  that  this  does 
not  stop  the  sparks  which  jump  from  the  cylinder  teeth  to 
the  concave.  The  reason  for  this  seems  to  be  that  the 
cylinder  shaft  is  always  well  lubricated  and  the  oil  acts  to 
insulate  the  shaft  from  the  box.  It  is  necessary,  therefore, 
to  make  a dry  brush  contact  with  the  shaft  itself  to  get  rid 
of  the  sparks.  A wire  from  this  brush  to  the  main  castings 
which  support  the  concaves  and  to  the  other  metal  parts 
of  the  machine  will  reduce  the  sparking  to  a minimum, 
A connection  with  the  ground  can  be  made  by  means 
of  an  iron  peg  driven  into  the  ground,  for  if  the 
metal  parts  inside  the  machine  are  connected  to- 
gether a good  ground  is  not  need.  The  wire  used 
may  be  made  as  small  as  is  convenient  to  use  as  the 
amount  of  current  to  be  carried  is  very  small.  The  sparks 
appear  not  because  there  is  any  large  amount  of  electricity 
generated,  but  because  the  parts  are  so  well  insulated  that 
the  path  through  the  air  is  the  easiest  one.  Ordinary  strand- 
ed lamp  cord  is  recommended  for  the  wiring  because  it  is 
strong  and  flexible.  It  may  be  stapled  to  the  wooden  frame 
of  the  separator  in  any  convenient  way  and  can  be 
so  installed  that  it  will  not  cause  delay  or  trouble  of  any 
kind.  A wooden  block  can  be  fitted  to  the  frame  in  such  a 
way  as  to  carry  a brush  made  up  of  several  wires  so  placed 
as  to  rub  on  the  cylinder  shaft.  This  should  be  so  made 
that  it  will  not  be  knocked  off  by  the  belts  and  so  that  it 
can  be  easily  kept  clean  and  free  from  grease.  A little 
clean  oil  will  not  insulate  a brush  of  this  sort,  but  on  ac- 
count of  the  dust  the  best  results  will  be  had  by  keeping 
the  brush  clean- and  dry. 

The  experiment  has  been  enlarged  upon  by  studying  the 
possibilities  of  igniting  smut  carrying  different  per  cents  of 
moisture ; also  the  ignition  of  smut  forced  through  an  atmos- 
phere moistened  with  steam. 

In  these  experiments  it  has  been  found  that  smut  is 
subject  to  ignition  or  explosion  when  it  contains  large  quan- 
tities of  water.  Smut  containing  as  much  as  35  per  cent 
of  its  weight  in  water  will  ignite  and  be  consumed  quite 


12 


rapidly,  but  in  no  case  has  the  consumption  been  as  rapid 
as  in  less  moist  samples.  Between  40  to  45  per  cent  of 
moisture  renders  the  smut  unfit  for  combustion.  This  is 
largely  due  to  the  surface  tension  of  the  water  in  hold- 
ing the  spores  together  'in  large  numbers.  With  a more 
powerful  force  than  that  which  has  been  used  in  our  ex- 
periments it  is  possible  to  overcome  the  surface  tension 
and  cause  the  material  to  ignite.  This  would  mean  that 
under  such  conditions  the  smut  would  have  to  carry  con- 
siderably more  water  than  45  per  cent  to  be  non-com- 
bustible. This  condition  never  exists  naturally.  The  mix- 
ing of  steam  with  the  air-smut  mixture  also  failed  to 
prevent,  or  materially  reduce  its  explosibility. 

From  experiments  conducted,  it  appears  that  steam  may 
be  considered  as  a partial  preventive,  but  not  a cure  for 
this  trouble. 

In  the  laboratory  the  smut  has  been  subjected  to  de* 
composition  and  products  are  present  in  the  distillates  which 
are  very  inflammable.  Some  of  the  distilled  product  can  be 
ignited  at  room  temperature.  Other  portions  ignite  approx- 
imately at  158  degrees  F.,  212  degrees  F.,  230  degrees  F., 
and  320  degrees  F.  These  products  may  be  very  similar 
if  not  identical  to  those  obtained  in  the  process  of  distill- 
ing wood  or  crude  petroleum,  and  in  such  cases  could  be 
readily  identified.  On  the  other  hand  if  they  are  entirely 
new  substances  the  identification  would  not  be  as  easy.  To 
a certain  extent  we  would  'expect  to  find  some  ether  and 
alcohol  in  most  plant  materials  and  in  this  case  there  is 
some  indication  that  this  is  so  from  the  ignitions  obtained 
at  temperatures  corresponding  to  the  ignition  of  ether  and 
alcohol. 

In  an  effort  to  determine  the  ignition  point  of  smut  it 
has  been  observed  that  the  material  begins  to  decompose 
at  a recorded  temperature  of  40  degrees  C.  At  55  degrees 
C.  the  volatile  materials  pass  off  very  rapidly.  Most  of  the 
material,  however,  does  not  pass  over  until  very  high  tem- 
peratures are  reached. 

This  report  has  been  considered  from  the  smut  point 
of  view,  but  inasmuch  as  other  materials  such  as  starch, 
flour,  or  other  organic  dust  are  also  subject  to  similar  dan- 
gers, it  should  not  be  construed  that  all  of  the  fires  or  ex- 
plosions that  took  place  during  the  past  season  were  due 
entirely  to  smut.  On  the  contrary,  the  speed  of  the  cylin- 
ders not  only  cracked  wheat  but  reduced  a part  of  the  wheat 


13 


and  straw  into  a powdered  dust,  a combination  of  which,  or 
any  one  of  them  properly  mixed  with  air  could  easily  ac- 
count for  the  disasters. 

Field  Investigations. 

In  order  to  obtain  first-hand  information  in  regard  to 
the  fires,  one  or  more  of  the  writers,  with  an  automobile,  in- 
vestigated, in  person,  60  fires,  obtaining  information  in  de- 
tail on  31  of  these  and  partial  information  on  the  remaining 
29.  The  following  blank  was  filled  out  on  the  ground  by 
the  person  making  the  investigations: 

Name  of  machine  owner 

Address  

Name  of  grain  owner 

Address  

Location  of  explosion  or  fire 

Date  of  explosion  or  fire , 

Time  of  day  of  explosion  or  fire...'. 

Nature  of  explosion  or  fire 

Where  started  

DAMAGE : 

Machine  Accessories  

Straw  Grain  

Field  Men  

Stock  Others  

Time  lost  Total  loss  $ 

Insurance  carried  

Bound,  headed  or  combined  grain 

Opinion  as  to  cause  of  fire  or  explosion 

Facts  supporting  opinions  


Oil  used Make  of  separator .; 

Speed  of  cylinders Frequency  of  hot  boxes 

Power  used Percentage  of  smut  in  wheat  (actual 


count — not  estimated)  

Variety  of  wheat  being  threshed 

Estimated  or  actual  yield Methods  used  for 

prevention  or  for  combating  fire  or  explosion 


If  a device  was  used  for  prevention  or  combating — effect  of 

same  on  quality  and  quantity  of  wheat  threshed 

Cost  of  device  

Eemarks  on  back  of  sheet. 

The  results  of  the  31  fires  in  question  have  been  care- 
fully digested  and  tabulated.  The  remaining  29,  while  more 


14 

or  less  incomplete,  tend  to  confirm  the  information  obtained 
from  the  31  in  question.  The  following  tables  have  been 
compiled  from  this  investigation: 

Approximate  Location  of  Explosions  or  Fires* 


Oakesdale  7 

Elberton  1 

Farmington  2 

Steptoe  1 

St.  John  4 

Diamond  1 

Garfield  2 

Werner  1 

Palouse  5 

Albion  1 

Colfax  2 

Pullman  .*. 2 

Sunset  1 

Fallons  1 

“H" 

Dates  of  Explosions  or  Fires. 

July  25  1 

28  3 

29  2 

31  2 

Aug.  3 6 

4 2 

5 1 

6 1 

7 1 

8 2 

10  5 

12  2 

13  1 

14  1 

15  1 

31 

Time  of  Day  Fires  Occurred. 

A.  M.— 

5 to  6 2 

6 to  7 2 

7 to  8 4 

8 to  9 3 

9 to  10  2 

10  to  11  4 

11  to  12  1 

P.  M.— 

2 to  3 4 

3 to  4 2 

4 to  5 2 

5 to  6 : 3 

6 to  7 1 

8 to  9 1 

31 


*Data  in  these  tables  refers  only  from  the  thirty-one  fires  fully  in- 
vestigated, and  not  to  all  fires  occurring  during  the  season. 


15 


Place  Where  Fires  Started. 

At  cylinder  12 

Well  inside  separator  4 

Behind  or  very  near  cylinder  11 

Over  fan  1 

All  over  3 

31 

Damage  to  Machine. 

Entire  loss  18 

Partial  loss  7 

Slight  damage  2 

No  damage  4 

31 

In  four  of  the  31  cases  investigated  there  was  little  or 
no  loss  to  the  machines  from  fire.  Of  the  remaining  27  the 
loss  varied  from  $20  to  $1500,  the  total  loss  on  the  27  being 
$20,620. 

Make  of  Separator. 

Rumley  8 

Aultman  & Taylor  4 

Nichols  & Sheperd  1 

Red  River  Special  2 

Pride  of  Washington  3 

Peerless  2 

J.  I.  Case  6 

Buffalo  Pitts  1 

Advance  4 

31 

Speed  of  Cylinder 

600  revolutions  1 

650  “ 1 

750  “ 1 

800  4 

850  “ 4 

900  3 

950  ''  3 

1000  “ 5 

1050  “ 2 

1100  “ 5 

1300  ''  1 

Not  given  1 

31 

Power  Used. 

steam  27 

Gasoline  4 

31 


16 


Percentage  of  Smut  in  Grain  Being 
Threshed. 

No  smut  1 

Less  than  1%  6 

1 to  5%  1 

5 to  10%  2 

10  to  20%  5 

20  to  30%  10 

30  to  40%  2 

40  to  50%  1 

Not  given  3 

31 

Variety  of  Wheat  Being  Threshed. 

Amber  2 

White  Amber  4 

Fortyfold  7 

Eed  Eussian  14 

Hybrid  143  1 

White  Hybrid  1 

Hybrid  128  1 

Scotch  Fife  1 

31 

Devices  for  Combating  Fires. 

Water  available  in  kegs,  buckets,  hose,  etc 6 

Steam  forced  into  cylinders 3* 

Fan  installed  to  remove  smut It 

Shovels  1 

Fire  extinguishers  1 

Pipes  running  full  length  of  machine  connected 
with  engine  for  forcing  water  into  separator  in 

emergency  1 

No  device  18 

31 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  above  tabulations  that  the  fires 
are  more  or  less  generally  distributed  over  the  Palouse  coun- 
try ; that  is,  there  is  no  evidence  that  they  are  more 
abundant  in  one  locality  than  another.  The  same  is  true 
with  reference  to  the  date  and  time  of  day. 

With  reference  to  the  particular  portion  of  the  machine 
where  fire  started,  the  evidence  is  inconclusive,  as  became 
apparent  from  questioning  the  machine  owners.  The  fires  in- 
variably spread  so  rapidly  or  were  so  nearly  of  an  explosive 
character  that  it  was  very  difficult,  indeed,  for  anyone  under 


*The  devices  for  forcing  steam  into  the  cylinders  were  put  in  at  a 
cost  of  $20,  $30  and  $50  respectively. 

+The  fan  was  installed  at  a cost  of  $15. 


17 

the  excitement  of  the  occasion  to  determine  definitely  the 
point  of  origin. 

The  fact  that  so  large  a number  of  the  machines  were 
entirely  lost  as  a result  of  the  fire  is  often  a sad  commentary 
on  the  carelessness  of  machine  owners. 

It  is  doubtful  whether  any  significance  can  be  attached 
to  the  make  of  the  separator.  With  reference  to  the  speed 
of  the  cylinder  it  is  apparent  in  a number  of  cases  that  ma- 
chines have  run  at  much  higher  speed  than  is  necessary. 
This  high  speed,  of  course,  will  contribute  to  increased  elec- 
trical discharge,  also  increased  dust  from  damaged  grain. 

With  reference  to  the  amount  of  smut  in  grain  being 
threshed,  it  is  quite  evident  that  the  quantity  of  smut  during 
the  season  in  question  is  very  much  above  the  normal. 

No  particular  significance  can  be  attached  to  the  variety 
of  wheat  being  threshed,  unless  perhaps  it  is  the  fact  that 
Red  Russian  smuts  worse  than  some  of  the  other  wheats. 
That  this  is  true  has  been  found  by  previous  investigations 
(Popular  Bulletin  No.  73,  Washington  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station). 

Lack  of  devices  for  combating  the  fires  in  a large 
number  of  cases  is  evidently  responsible  for  a considerable 
amount  of  loss. 

In  twenty-four  of  these  thirty-one  explosions,  the  fires 
spread  to  the  straw  stacks  and  destroyed  them. 

In  the  fires  that  were  investigated  two  horses  were 
burned  somewhat.  In  six  out  of  the  31  the  fires  spread  to 
standing  grain  and  did  more  or  less  damage.  In  these  31 
fires  investigated  seven  men  were  slightly  and  one  severely 
burned. 

In  10  cases  out  of  the  31  the  fire  damaged  the  threshed 
grain  more  or  less,  the  loss  totaling  1163  sacks.  In  most 
cases  more  or  less  damage  was  done  to  tools  and  accessories, 
belts  and  other  materials  near  the  separator. 

Of  the  31  fires  in  question,  complete  information  was 
obtained  in  regard  to  the  time  lost  for  24  of  them.  This 
varied  from  a few  hours  in  the  case  of  4 fires  to  a total  of 
10  days  in  the  case  of  one.  The  average  time  lost  was  from 
1 to  4 days.  The  total  number  of  days  lost  for  these  24 
fires  was  92,  or  a total  loss  in  labor  of  between  $7500  and 
$8000. 

Of  the  31  outfits  in  question,  two  carried  no  insurance, 
information  was  not  available  for  three  and  26  carried  in- 
surance. In  some  cases  this  insurance  was  adjusted  in  full, 


18 


in  some  cases  for  half  and  in  some  cases  has  not  been  adjust- 
ed at  all. 

Twenty-eight  of  these  fires  occurred  while  threshing 
bound  grain,  two  while,  threshing  headed  grain  which  had 
been  stacked  for  a little  time,  and  one  while  threshing 
headed  grain  direct  from  the  header.  Two  fires  were  re- 
ported to  have  occurred  in  combines,  tho  these  Avere  not 
investigated. 

Various  opinions  Avere  held  by  the  machine  OAvners  in 
regard  to  the  cause  of  the  fires,  as  follows: 


Incendiarism  16 

Smut  6 

Oil  2 

Dry  weather  1 

No  opinion  6 


'31 

It  might  be  added  also  that  early  in  the  season  it  Avas 
the  opinion  of  several  machine  OAvners  AA^ho  were . threshing 
Avith  gasoline  power,  that  the  fires  were  caused  by  sparks 
from  engines.  However,  this  theory  Avas  dispelled  later  on 
by  a number  of  fires  occurring  in  outfits  using  gasoline. 

While  it  was  not  possible  to  make  an  investigation  of 
all  or  even  of  the  majority  of  the  fires  occurring  the  past 
season,  the  Avriters  are  satisfied  that  the  31  fires  reported 
upon  in  detail  and  the  others  investigated  in  part  are  repre- 
sentative of  the  fires  occurring  throughout  the  season — that 
is,  no  ncAv  features  have  come  to  the  attention  of  the  inves- 
tigators in  regard  to  any  of  these  fires  that  do  not  appear 
in  the  31  reported  in  detail. 

SUMMARY  OF  INVESTIGATIONS  AS  TO  CAUSE. 

Summarizing  the  findings  of  the  investigations  thus  far, 
it  is  quite  evident  that,  within  the  district  mentioned  at 
the  beginning  of  the  report,  there  is  no  significant  geo- 
graphical distribution  of  the  fires,  nor  is  there  any  signifi- 
cant distribution  with  reference  to  time  of  day  at  Avhich  they 
occurred. 

The  season  in  question  has  been  an  unusually  dry  one. 
Not  only  has  the  humidity  been  Ioav  throughout  the  summer 
but  the  moisture  content  of  the  soil  Avas  considerably  beloAV 
normal,  OAving  to  a shortage  of  3 or  4 inches  of  rainfall 
during  the  previous  Avinter  and  spring.  These  conditions 
contributed  to  an  unusually  low  moisture  content  in  the 
grain  and  straw,  thus  increasing  its  combustibility  and  mak- 
ing it  more  easily  broken  up  by  the  threshing  machinery. 


19 


The  same  dry  condition  also  contributed  to  an  increase 
in  the  normal  amount  of  static  electricity  developed  by  the 
cylinder  and  other  portions  of  the  machinery. 

Smut  is  found  to  be  exceedingly  inflammable  owing  to 
the  fact  that  the  individual  spores  are  very  small  and  con- 
tain about  4 or  5%  of  oil 

Tt  is  also  found  that  the  amount  of  smut  in  wheat  during 
the  season  in  question  was  considerably  al)ove  that  of  pre- 
vious years. 

It  thus  becomes  reasonably  certain  that  the  fires,  so- 
called  explosions,  were  caused  by  a com])iuation  of  condi- 
tions ; namely,  exceedingly  dry  season,  unusually  large 
amount  of  smut,  increased  amount  of  organic  dust  from 
])roken  grain  and  straw,  increased  coml)ustibility  of  l)oth 
smut  and  dust,  increased  amount  of  static  electricity. 

(It  must  be  borne  in  miud  that  similar  fires  and  explo- 
sions have  occurred  in  previous  years,  though  in  very  much, 
smaller  numbers.) 

No  conclusive  evidence  was  found  of  incendiarism  or  of 
fires  caused  by  lubricating  oils  or  by  hot  boxes. 

General  carelessness  in  regard  to  ordinaiy  precautions 
foi*  preventing  and  extinguishing  fires  was,  of  course,  re- 
sponsible for  greatly  increased  losses. 

FIRE  RETARDERS. 

There  is  no  known  chemical  substance  familiar  to  the 
writers  that  can  be  applied  as  a satisfactoiy  fire-proofing 
for  wood.  Even  a lining  of  tin  or  iron  will  not  protect 
wood  against  fire.  Asl)estos  lining  is  better  than  ii*on  in 
many  places  but  has  the  disadvantage  over  the  ii*on  in 
offering  a poor  wearing  surface.  Wood  and  peat  that  have 
been  subjected  to  high  j^ressure  are  very  T*esista,nt  and  this 
foi'in  of  wood  is  perhaps  superior  to  any  Avood  treated 
chemically.  We  must,  therefore  regard  such  substances  that 
are  used  as  fire  retarders,  and  not  proof  against  fii*e. 

In  a series  of  investigations  with  chemicals  generally 
recommended  to  protect  Avood  from  fire  it  has  been  found 
that  applications  of  strong  solutions  of  common  lye  are  as 
efficient  as  any  of  the  ‘‘fire-proof  paints.”  The  next  best 
material  is  one  composed  of  casein,  sodium  silicate  and 
cement.  The  treatment,  hoAvever,  has  no  particular  advan- 
tage over  untreated  A\M)od  unless  it  is  possible  to  control 
the  fu'os  immediately  following  the  blaze. 


20 


FIRE  EXTINGUISHERS. 

Fire  extinguishers  are  of  two  types,  the  liquid  and  the 
powdei*.  Of  the  liipiid  forms  perhaps  the  sodium  bicarlxm- 
ate  (baking  soda),  water  and  sulfuric  acid  combination  is 
th(^  most  extensi\(‘ly  used.  Sodium  bicarbonate  is  also  us(‘d 
in  the  dry  foi'iii  for  the  sanu'  purpose.  Other  di‘y  powd(‘rs 
us(‘d  as  (‘xtinguishers  are  combinations  of  sulfate  and  chlo- 
ride salts  of  soda  or  ammonia  or  with  sodium  bicarbonate' 
in  combination. 

Fi'om  a compai'ative  point  of  view  it  appears  that  the 
lieiuid  form  is  to  be  pre'feu-re'd  ov('-r  the  dry  powder.  In  our 
(‘xjx'rinu'nts  on  this  phase'  eif  the  subject  the  sexlium  bicar- 
be)imte^  ])e)wele'r  has  neit  preive'ii  te)  be  very  satisfacteiry.  The 
me)st  eflicie'nt  mate'i'ial  tliat  we  have  worked  with  is  ammeinia 
eliluted  with  water.  Dilutienis  eif  one  to  three  parts  eif  streing 
ammeiiiia  wate'r  te)  ten  parts  of  water  have  been  very  e'fficient. 
Anime)nia  appe'ars  te)  sme)ther  the  tire  and  its  main  value 
e)ve'r  that  of  water  is  unde)ubteelly  due  to  this  jK^culiar  fact. 
If  tire  e'xtinguishe'rs  are  te)  be  used  it  aiipears  advisable'  that 
be)ttles  e)f  stre)ng  ammeinia  water  be  kept  in  convenie'iit  jilaces 
abe)ut  the'  separate)i*s. 

REMEDIES  SUGGESTED. 


While  the  results  e)btaineel  are  meire  e)r  less  tentative,  it  ^ 
is  evieh'iit  that  there'  can  be'  ne)  single  cure  e)r  jire've'iitative 
for  a elifticulty  e>f  this  kinel.  It  ge)e's  withe)ut  saying  that 
e)i'dina,i‘y  precautieins  she)idd  be  take'ii  against  tire,  regai'elless 
e)f  its  cause.  Especially  is  this  true  in  cases  like  threshing  : 
e)uttits  vvhei'c  the  elange'r  is  se)  great  be)t,h  e)n  a.cce)i’nt  e)f  the'  ' 
ve'i*y  ce)nd)ustible  mate'i'ial  aiiel  alse)  the'  fui'the'r  fact  that  a : 
setting  is  usually  se)me  ce)nsiele'rable  elistance  from  a watei'  , 
sujiply.  j 


Fire  can  also  be'  gre'atly  retarded  by  the  use  of  so-called 
fii'e'])i'e)e)f  jiainls  aiul  caustic  ])e)tash,  as  state'el  earlie'r  in  this 
I)ublicat ie)n.  Anything  that  will  re‘tai*el  the^  tire  toi*  a few 
t))e)me'nts  e)i'  eve'ii  a lew  se'ce)nels  until  it  can  be  ce)ntre)lleel 
is  e)f  ail  aelvantage. 

With  refe'i-ence  te)  tire  extinguishei's,  it  is  eviele'iit  that 
te)0  gi-e'at  re'liance'  canne)t  be'  ]ilace'el  ui)e)n  the'in,  the)Ugh  the'y 
are  e)f  se)me  aelvantage'  anel  will,  like'  the'  tire'])i‘e)of  paint,  aie 
in  i*('tai‘eling  a sueleh'n  tire'.  It  is  he)pe'el  alse)  that  the  manu 
factui'ing  ce)m])anie'S  may  se'e'  tit  te)  give  se)me'  atte'ntie)n  te)l 
the'  ce)nstruct,ie)n  e)f  tii‘e‘])re)e)f  se'})ai‘ate)rs.  This  is  be'ing  take'iii 
U])  with  the  ce)m])anie's  by  the’ 


State  College. 


21 

The  following*  reconiinendations  are  vei*y  strongly  urged 
to  the  attention  of  the  machine  owners  and  fai*mers : 

Fii'st,  that  the  cylinder  of  the  sc'parator  he  gi*ounded 
l)y  means  of  an  electric  brush  connected  to  the  ground  l)y 
wire.  This  connection  should  l)e  made  by  an  ii*on  peg  driven 
a foot  or  two  into  the  gi*oiind.  It  will  serv(‘  to  conduct  off 
at  least  a large  portion  of  the  electricity  generated  and  is 
an  inexpensive  precaution. 

Second,  that  (weiy  machine  he  ])rovid('d  with  a system 
of  wat(‘r  sprinlvlers.  A thr('('-(|nart(‘r  inch  gas  pi[)e  with 
Ilexihle  hose  coniu'ctions  I'unning  from  tin'  l)oih'r  to  tlie 
S(‘pai*at(‘d  should  l)e  conmmted  to  a gas  pip(‘  I'lmning  across 
th(‘  intc'rior*  of  tin'  s(‘])ai'atoi*,  aud  from  tliis  pipe  two  or 

thi-ee  l)ranches  should  extend  the  entire'  hmgth  of  tlu' 
s('pai‘ator.  In  th(\s(‘  ])ip('S  should  Ix'  drilhxl  at  int(U'v;ds 
of  six  or  eight  inclu's,  hoh's  2-82  to  2-32  of  nn  inch  in 

diametei',  thus  mahing  an  ('ffectivc'  sprinkling  systtmi.  The 
pipes  should  h(‘  so  adjust(‘d  iu  the  niachim'  that  wlum  the 
water  is  tui'iic'd  into  them  tlu'  (mtir('  ('interioi*  of  the 
machine  Avill  Ix'  filhxl  with  a si)ray  of  wat(u-.  Tlx^  whole 
outfit  can  h(‘-  avrang(xl  tluit  th(‘  o])('ning  of  a valv('  at  tlu' 
('ugiiK'  Avill  flood  th('  s('i)arator  insidi'  t(vn  oi*  fiftcxm  st'conds. 
The  expense  of  such  a device  would  not  exceed  -f20  or  $30. 

Third,  that  a (luantity  of  Avatcu*  in  hai'rels  or  otlu'r  re- 

C(']:)tach‘s  he  placed  near  or  u])on  the  S(‘parator  and  buckets, 
used  for  no  other  purpose,  he  provided  for  distributing  this 
water  in  case  of  fire.  A supply  of  shovels  could  with  ad- 
vantage be  kept  on  hand,  enabling  the  creAv  to  fight  the  fire 
with  dirt. 

Fourth,  that  a couple  of  furrows  be  plowed  around  the 
setting  before  the  threshing  is  commenced  in  order  to  pre- 
vent the  spreading  of  fire  from  the  straw  pile  and  machine 
to  adjacent  fields  or  other  property. 

Fifth,  that  in  all  cases  the  separator  be  connected  with 
the  engine  by  means  of  a strong  cable  enabling  it  to  be 
pulled  aAvay  from  the  straw  pile  upon  the  outbreak  of  fire. 
The  separator  should  be  kept  running  until  the  straw  is  out. 
One  difficulty  in  connection  with  this,  however,  is  the  usual 
presence  of  a pile  of  straw  for  fuel  directly  in  the  rear  of 
the  engine.  It  is  suggested  that  this  straw  for  fuel  could 
be  kept  in  a light  wagon  constructed  for  this  purpose  in- 
stead of  upon  the  ground.  Said  wagon  could  then  be  easily 
moved  from  behind  the  engine,  This  will,  of  course,  neces- 


22 


sitatc  the  use  of  two  instead  of  one  wa^on  for  conveyance 
of  straAv  from  the  straw  pile  to  the  engine. 

Sixth,  that  the  members  of  the  crew  be  given  definite 
directions  as  to  just  Avhat  to  do  in  case  of  fire;  i.  e.,  an 
organized  system  of  fii*e  fighting  should  be  arranged  for. 
This  will  tend  to  prevent  individual  members  of  the  crew 
from  losing  their  heads  under  the  excitement  of  a fire  and 
avoid  duplication  of  effort. 

In  other  words,  it  is  believed  that  if  a number  of  pre- 
cautions against  fire,  such  as  are  ordinarily  adopted,  be  used 
that  a great  deal  of  loss  from  this  source  will  be  avoided. 

Since  smut  is  undoubtedly  one  of  the  primary  causes  of 
the  fires,  it  becomes  especially  important  that  systems  of 
ngi'icidture  be  adopted  which  will  tend  to  eliminate  smut 
so  far  as  possible,  in  the  wheat  crop.  The  greatest  care 
•should  be  exercised  in  regard  to  seed  treatment,  suggestions 
in  regal'd  to  which  can  be  obtained  from  Popular  Bulletin 
No.  78  of  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station. 

The  amount  of  smut  in  grain  can  also  be  greatly  di- 
minished by.  the  abandonment  of  the  agricultural  practice 
of  growing  but  one  crop,  namely  wheat,  on  a farm.  With 
a pro])er  system  of  crop  rotation  and  diversification  the 
amount  of  smut  in  wheat  will  be  greatly  diminished. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIRECTOR’S  OFFICE 


Twenty-fourth  Annual  Report 

For  the  Year  Ending  June  30,  1914 


BULLETIN  NO.  118 
November,  1914 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


*The  Twenty-thir4  Annual  Report  was  not  published. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


James  C.  Cunningham,  President Spokane 

R.  C.  McCroskey,  Vice  President Garfield 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  the  College),  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 


EXPERIMENT  STATION  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.D 

Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A 

O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.M 

A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.D 

O.  M.  Morris,  B.  S 

Geo.  Severance,  B.  S 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A,  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S 

Geo.  A.  Olson,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S. 
W.  T.  Shaw,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S 

Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.D 

C.  A.  Magoon,  M.  A 

J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S 

M.  A.  Yothers,  B.  S 

Henry  F.  Holtz,  B.  S 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  F.  Monroe,  B.  S.  A 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S 

H.  M.  Woolman 

R.  L.  Buchanan,  B.  S 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

...^...Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  in  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL 


Pullman,  Wash.,  Nov.  14,  1914. 

Honorable  Ernest  Lister,  Governor, 

Olympia,  Washington. 

Sir: 

I have  the  honor  to  submit  herewith  the  Twenty-fourth 
Annual  Report  of  the  State  Agricultural  Experiment  Sta- 
tion covering  the  work  of  this  Station  for  the  year  ending 
June  30,  1914. 

IRA  D.  CARDIFF, 

Director. 


Pig.  I.  New  James  Wilson  Hall  of  Agriculture  (Ready  for  occupancy  in  Septem- 
ber). A portion  of  the  Experiment  Station  work  will  be  housed  in  this  building. 


Twenty-fourtK  Annual  Report,  Washington 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


CHANGES  IN  STAFF 

With  the  beginning  of  the  fiscal  year  1913-14,  Ira  D. 
Cardiff,  Head  of  the  Department  of  Botany  of  the  College 
and  Plant  Physiologist  of  the  Experiment  Station,  entered 
upon  the  duties  of  Director  of  the  Station.  Several  other 
changes  and  additions  to  the  staff  of  the  Station  follows : 
George  Severance,  Superintendent  of  the  Western  Washing- 
ton Station  at  Puyallup,  was  appointed  Agriculturist.  E. 
G.  Schafer,  Assistant  Agronomist  in  the  Kansas  Experiment 
Station,  was  made  Agronomist  in  the  place  of  Paul  White, 
who  resigned  to  accept  a position  in  a private  institution  of 
Southern  California.  R.  L.  Buchanan,  an  Assistant  in  Farm 
Crops  of  the  Michigan  Experiment  Station,  was  appointed 
Assistant  in  Farm  Crops  in  the  Washington  Station.  C.  K. 
McWilliams  of  the  University  of  California  was  appointed 
Assistant  Chemist  in  the  position  made  vacant  by  the  resig- 
nation of  W.  L.  Hadlock.  The  resignation  of  Alex  Carlyle, 
Cerealist  of  the  Station,  to  accept  a position  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Minnesota,  was  filled  by  the  appointment  of  E.  F. 
Gaines  as  Acting  Cerealist.  C.  A.  Magoon,  Assistant  Director 
of  the  Boston  Biochemical  Laboratories,  was  appointed  Assist- 
ant Bacteriologist  of  the  Experiment  Station.  R.  C.  Ashby, 
Animal  Husbandman,  resigned  just  previous  to  the  close  of 
the  fiscal  year  to  accept  a position  in  the  University  of  Min- 
nesota. 

CHANGES  IN  ORGANIZATION 

For  the  purpose  of  facilitating  administrative  work  and 
to  affect  a more  logical  organization  of  the  Station,  two 
changes  in  organization  were  made  early  in  the  year. 

The  Divisions  of  Animal  Husbandry,  Crop  Production, 
Dairying  and  Soil  Physics  were  placed  under  one  adminis- 
trative head,  who  is  directly  responsible  to  the  Director  in 
matters  concerning  organization  and  finance. 

The  Division  of  Plant  Pathology  was  abolished  and  in 
its  stead  was  organized  a Division  of  Botany,  with  a Botanist 


6 WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

as  Head,  and  a Plant  Pathologist,  two  Assistant  Plant  Path- 
ologists. and  an  Assistant  Bacteriologist  on  the  staff  of  this 
Division. 

INVESTIGATIONAL  WORK  ^ 

For  convenience,  the  administration  of  the  investigational 
work  of  the  Station  is  conducted  in  ten  different  divisions. 

DIVISION  OF  ANIMAL  HUSBANDRY 

Owing  to  changes  in  the  station  staff  several  projects  in 
Animal  Husbandry  were  suspended  during  the  year.  One 
project  on  testing  of  forage  crops  for  pork  production  was 
carried  through  the  year.  Different  lots  of  hogs  were  fed 
upon  rations  of  oat  and  pea  forage,  combined  with  grain, 
tankage,  and  milk  in  various  proportions  and  combinations. 
The  results  of  the  experiment  seem  to  indicate  that  after 
paying  $30  per  ton  for  grain  and  25c  per  cwt.  for  milk 
consumed,  the  net  gain  from  the  forage  crops  varied  from 
$28.80  per  acre  to  $46.41  per  acre,  depending  somewhat  upon 
the  character  of  the  concentrated  feeds  used  with  the  forage 
crops.  The  investigation  indicates  that  the  greater  the  grain 
ration  fed  to  pigs  on  oat  and  pea  forage,  the  great'er  return 
for  the  forage  up  -to  a three  per  cent  grain  ration.  The 
feeding  of  grain  ration  in  dry  lot  was  distinctly  unprofitable. 

DIVISION  OF  BOTANY 

Work  in  the  Division  of  Botany  was  conducted  on  five 
projects  during  the  year.  In  addition,  a considerable  amount 
of  miscellaneous  investigation  has  been  carried  on  in  con- 
nection with  diseases  reported  from  various  portions  of  the 
state.  Among  the  diseases  reported  and  upon  which  more 
or  less  investigation  has  been  -conducted  and  assistance  ren- 
dered to  farmers  during  the  year  are  the  following: 

Alfalfa:  Downy  Mildew,  Root  Rot  due  to  Sclerotinia. 

Apple:  Anthracnose,  Baldwin  Spot  Fire  Blight  Crown 
Gall,  Mildew,  Root  Rot  caused  by  Armillaria  Mellea,  Rosette, 
Scab.  ■ , 

Apricot:  California  Peach  Blight. 

Barley : Smut. 

Blackberry : Rust. 

Cherry:  Brown  Rot,  Gummosis. 

Currant : Blight. 

Gooseberry : Mildew. 

Grape : Crown  Gall. 

Onion:  Bacterial  Rot. 


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8 WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

Peach:  California  Peach  Blight,  Peach  Leaf  Curl,  Pow- 
dery Mildew. 

Pear:  Fire  Blight,  Crown  Gall,  Mildew. 

Quince:  Fire  Blight,  Crown  Gall. 

Potato:  Black  Leg,  Dry  Rot,  Early  Blight,  Late  Blight, 
Rosette,  Scab. 

Prune : Crown  Gall. 

Raspberry:  Bluestem. 

Rose:  Blackspot,  Mildew. 

Tomato:  Yellow  or  Western  Blight. 

In  addition  to  these,  a very  large  number  of  inquiries 
and  specimens  have  been  received  concerning  injuries  caused 
by  winter  killing. 

A considerable  amount  of  work  has  also  been  done  in 
the  accumulation  and  systematic  arrangement  of  a large 
number  of  disease-producing  fungi  found  in  the  state,  so 
that  there  is  now  on  hand  a very  good  working  herbarium  of 
the  major  portion  of  the  fungous  pests  of  Washington. 
Tomato  Blight. 

This  is  a project  upon  which  considerable  work  has  been 
done  by  this  station.  The  results  of  a portion  of  the  investi- 
gations have  been  published  during  the  current  year 
in  General  Bulletin  No.  115.  These  results  are  largely  of 
scientific  interest,  dealing  primarily  with  the  causative  or- 
ganism which  is  found  to  be  two  species  of  Fusarium.  The 
results  of  the  investigations  indicate  that  a species  of  Rhi- 
zoctonia  is  also  involved  in  the  disease,  and  investigations 
are  being  continued  upon  this  phase  of  the  problem.  A lim- 
ited amount  of  data  has  also  been  accumulated  with  refer- 
ence to  the  control  of  the  disease,  and  work  along  this  line 
is  being  prosecuted;  also  investigations  are  being  made  with 
reference  to  the  resistance  of  varieties  and  the  production 
by  breeding  of  resistant  varieties.  A popular  bulletin  deal- 
ing with  the  phases  of  the  problem  of  general  interest  will 
very  shortly  be  published. 

Gooseberry  Mildew. 

An  experiment  dealing  with  the  best  methods  of  spray- 
ing for  gooseberry  mildew  has  been  carried  on.  Results  will 
shortly  be  published. 

Smut. 

This  is  one  of  the  oldest  and  most  important  projects 
of  the  Experiment  Station.  The  fact  that  this  fungus  causes 
the  loss  of  millions  of  dollars  annually  in  one  of  the  leading 
wheat-producing  states,  makes  it  an  economic  problem  of 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


9 


great  importance.  Work  is  being  conducted  upon  this  prob- 
lem in  several  different  lines : First,  in  the  field  of  seed 
treatment,  a considerable  amount  of  experimentation  has 
been  conducted  within  the  year,  throwing  much  light  upon 
the  question.  On  the  whole,  a treatment  of  seed  for  10 
minutes  Avith  a solution  of  1 lb.  of  copper  sulphate  plus  1 lb. 
of  sodium  chloride  to  5 gallons  of  Avater  has  proved  the  most 
feasible  form  of  treatment.  Information  was  obtained  in 
regard  to  the  injury  of  seed  due  to  treatment.  Investigations 
led  to  the  discovery  that  a very  large  percentage  of  the  Avheat 
seed  is  so  injured  by  threshing  that  treatment  for  smut  re- 
sults in  destroying  the  Autality  of  the  seed.  In  fact,  it  has 
been  found  that  ordinary  commercial  threshing  )ne- 
chanically  destroys  the  vitality  of  approximately  30  per  cent 
of  the  seed.  Second,  the  problem  has  been  attacked  from 
the  standpoint  of  soil  sanitation,  or  so  handling  the  soil  as 
to  destroy  the  smut,  Avhich  is  retained  therein  from  year  to 
year.  It  has  been  conclusively  established  that  approximately 
half  the  smut  infection  results  from  smut  carried  over  in 
the  soil  rather  than  that  upon  the  seed.  Third,  the  problem 
has  been  attacked  from  the  standpoint  of  breeding  and  selec- 
tion. Efforts  ai*e  ])eing  made  to  breed  resistant  varieties  of 
AA^heat.  Variety  tests  of  AA'heat  Avith  reference  to  their 
susceptibility  to  infection  indicates  that  there  is  Avide  varia- 
tion among  the  different  Avheat  varieties.  Of  all  those  tested 
in  these  experiments,  Hybrid  143  has  proven  most  resistant. 
Fourth,  a study  is  being  made  of  the  life  history  of  the 
fungus  itself,  especially  as  to  the  mechanics  of  infection 
and  the  behavior  of  the  fungus  during  the  groAving  period 
of  the  AA^heat.  Many  of  the  results  thus  far  obtained  in  the 
aforementioned  lines  of  Avork  have  been  published  in  Popu- 
lar Bulletin  No.  73. 

During  the  past  summer,  a neAV  phase  of  the  smut  prob- 
lem forced  itself  upon  the  Station.  With  the  opening  of  the 
threshing  season,  there  occurred  numerous  fires  and  explo- 
sions in  threshing  separators,  some  three  hundred  of  them 
in  all  having  been  reported.  The  Station  at  once  detailed 
a force  of  a half  dozen  members  of  its  staff  to  Avork  upon  this 
problem,  Avith  the  results  that  it  Avas  found  that  the  fires 
AA^ere  largely  due  to  smut  combined  Avith  an  unusually  dry 
season.  The  report  of  this  Avork  has  been  published  in  Gen- 
eral Bulletin  No.  117. 

Physiological  Effect  of  Sprays. 

This  is  a project  dealing  Avith  the  effect  of  various 
spray  materials,  which  are  in  commercial  use,  upon  the 


10  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

physiology  of  different  varieties  of  economic  plants.  The 
work  is  conducted  with  some  thirty  different  kinds  of  spray 
materials  and  thus  far  upon  tomatoes,  potatoes,  prunes,  and 
apples  both  under  field  and  laboratory  conditions. 

Soil  Physiology. 

This  project  deals  with  the  physiological  effect  of  micro- 
organisms on  soils  under  different  methods  of  tillage  and 
cropping,  and  a systematic  study  of  the  organisms  inhabiting 
these  soils. 

During  a portion  of  the  year  the  Division  of  Botany  co- 
operated v/ith  the  Dairy  Division  in  the  study  of  organisms 
involved  in  the  abnormal  fermentations  of  milk. 

DIVISION  OF  CHEMISTRY 

In  addition  to  seven  regular  projects,  the  Chemistry  Di- 
vision has  carried  on  a great  deal  of  wmrk  in  assistance  to 
other  divisions  of  the  station,  especially  by  way  of  analyses. 
It  has  also  made,  during  the  year,  a large  number  of  analyses 
of  soils,  foods,  fertilizers,  and  other  materials  for  citizens  of 
the  state. 

The  research  work  of  this  division  is  conducted  in  the 
following  projects : 

The  Function  of  Sulphur  as  Plant  Food. 

The  work  involved  under  this  project  has  been  along 
several  lines  and  may  he  summarized  as  follows : 

Comparative  quantitative  determinations  of  total  sul- 
phur in  plant  residues,  both  by  the  sodium  peroxide  method 
and  bomb  explosion  method ; analyses  for  surphur  content 
of  plant  residues,  soils,  water,  and  chemicals;  analyses  of 
wheat  with  the  object  of  differentiating  between  organic  and 
inorganic  sulphur  and  a study  of  the  importance  of  sulphur 
as  a plant  food  material. 

The  Progressive  Development  of  the  Wheat  Kernel. 

The  aim  of  this  project  is  to  determine  by  cytological 
methods  the  development  of  the  grain  from  its  youngest 
stage  to  maturity,  and  attempt  to  determine  at  what  time 
the  starch  and  proteins  are  laid  down  and  in  what  order, 
and  to  ascertain,  if  loossible,  the  importance  of  such  changes 
as  occur  in  the  formation  of  gluten. 

The  work  of  the  past  year  has  been  largely  of  a chem- 
ical nature,  having  to  do  with  the  determinations  of  the 
chemical  changes  taking  place  at  various  stages  in  the  de- 
velopment of  the  wheat.  The  relation  of  the  accumulation 
and  deposition  of  foods  to  the  moisture  content  and  tern- 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


11 


perature  has ' been  studied.  Efforts  have  been  made  to  iso- 
late the  enzymes  involved  in  the  deposition  of  gluten ; also 
the  relation  of  phosphorus  and  sulphur  to  the  metabolic  pro- 
cesses involved.  Owing  to  changes  in  the  staff,  the  cyto- 
logical  phase  of  the  work  was  temporarily  suspended  during 
the  year,  but  is  being  resumed  during  the  present  year  when 
it  is  hoped  to  bring  the  project  to  a definite  conclusion  and 
publish  the  results. 

Baking  Qualities  of  Flour. 

Additional  samples  of  modified  flour  were  prepared  this 
year  and  studied.  As  in  the  preceding  experiments,  it  has 
been  found  that  floui*  which  can  be  made  into  bread  can  be  pre- 
pared without  gluten.  This  work  is  incorporated  in  Gen- 
eral Bulletin  No.  100  on  Wheat  and  Flour  Investigations, 
Part  II.  It  is  planned  during  the  coming  winter  to  con- 
tinue the  study  of  this  interesting  problem : First,  to  see 
what  importance  different  components  of  flour  play  in  the 
technique  of  bread  making;  second,  to  determine,  if  pos- 
sible, a means  for  measuring  strength.  The  results  obtained 
thus  far  indicate  that  surface  tension  is  a very  important 
factor  so  far  as  strength  is  concerned,  but  up  to  the  present, 
the  methods  in  use  for  measuring  surface  tension  have  been 
of  no  particular  value  to  show  differences  in  flours,  the 
baking  qualities  of  which  are  known  to  be  different. 

Influence  of  Cultivation  on  the  Nitrogen  Content  and 
Yield  of  Wheat. 

Just  why  the  nitrogen  content  should  vary  under  the 
same  climatic  conditions  cannot  be  answered  from  LeClerc’s 
or  Thatcher’s  work,  because  it  has  been  found  that  nitrogen 
content  varies  from  1.5  per  cent  to  as  high  as  3.25  per  cent 
in  a locality,  and  this  is  as  wide  a range  as  observed  by  dif- 
ferent investigators  under  different  climatic  conditions.  It 
seemed  that  the  variation  in  nitrogen  was  due  to  the  methods 
of  handling  the  soil,  which  has  not  been  explained  by  agro- 
nomists in  some  twenty  odd  treatises  for  preparing  land  for 
wheat  culture,  since  none  of  them  associated  quality  with 
such  a practice.  The  experimental  work  last  year  was  ]im- 
ited  to  one  variety  grown  on  the  Experiment  Station  Farm. 
The  results  of  the  first  year’s  trials  for  winter  wheat  indi- 
cate that  cultivation  and  the  distance  which  the  rows  of 
wheat  are  apart  have  very  much  to  do  with  the  nitrogen  com- 
position of  wheat.  In  fact,  it  has  been  possible  to  increase 
the  nitrogen  by  means  of  cultivation,  in  quantity  varying  as 
much  as  has  been  attributed  by  investigators  to  climatic 


12  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

influences.  With  spring  grain,  the  extremes  of  variation  are 
not  so  marked ; the  tendencies  are  to  form  wheat  of  high 
nitrogen  content,  but,  as  in  the  case  of  winter  wheat,  the 
spring  varieties  also  increased  by  means  of  cultivation  and 
with  the  distance  apart  which  the  wheat  was  grown.  The 
possible  reason  why  the  spring  wheat,  under  the  same  con- 
ditions, tends  to  be  higher  in  nitrogen  than  Avinter  wheat 
may  be  explained  through  the  spring  cultivation  which  the 
land  received  before  sowing  to  Avheat.  The  winter  Avheat 
very  rarely  receives  a spring  cultivation.  It  might  be  well 
to  mention  in  this  connection  that  some  of  the  Big  Bend 
farmers  Avho  grow  Avinter  AA^heat  also  cultivate  in  the  spring, 
and  this  practice  results  in  Avheat  of  plumper  grain  and 
equally  as  high  in  gluten  or  nitrogen  content  as  is  possible 
by  groAving  the  spring  varieties. 

This  year  the  experiment  Avas  elaborated  on  and  the 
varieties  of  Avheat  increased  from  one  to  six.  The  experi- 
ment is  being  conducted  both  at  Pullman  and  Ritzville  under 
similar  methods;  Avhile  at  GrandvieAv  tAvo  varieties  of  spring 
wheat  Avere  groAvn  under  the  same  methods  as  at  Pullman 
but  with  variable  quantities  of  Avater  folloAved  by  culti- 
vation. 

Relation  of  Composition  of  Wheat  to  Soil  Types. 

This  project  has  for  its  object  a determination  of 
Avhether  types  of  soil  found  on  different  hill  slopes  affect 
the  chemical  composition  and  quality  of  AA^heat.  Little  Avork 
was  done  upon  this  project  during  the  year  OAving  to  the 
fact  that  the  Avheat  crops  on  the  ground  under  investiga- 
tion are  groAvn  alternate  years. 

Liming  Alfalfa. 

The  project  Avas  suspended  during  the  year  OAving  to 
changes  in  the  Experiment  Station  Farm. 

Analyses  of  Insecticides. 

This  is  a project  involving  the  routine  analyses  of  va- 
rious neAv  insecticides  and  fungicides  offered  for  sale  in  the 
state.  Work  on  the  project  is  conducted  at  irregular  in- 
tervals. 

The  Division  of  Chemistry  also  has  a project  entitled, 
Co-operative  Work  With  the  Association  of  Official  Agricul- 
tural Chemists,  Avhich  has  for  its  purpose  the  improvement 
of  chemical  methods  and  chemical  technique  as  applied  to 
agricultural  nroblems.  During  the  past  year  an  important 
piece  of  Avork  Avas  carried  on  under  this  project  Avith  refer- 
ence to  the  quantitative  determinations  of  mono,  di,  and 
tri  calcium  phosphates  and  their  application.  The  results  of 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


13 


these  investigations  have  been  published  as  General  Bul- 
letin No.  116. 

DIVISION  OF  DAIRY  HUSBANDRY 

Owing  to  lack  of  funds  it  has  been  impossible  to  do 
more  than  a small  amount  of  work  in  the  dairying  lines 
during  the  past  year.  It  is  hoped  that  funds  will  be  pro- 
vided in  the  future  in  order  that  investigations  commensu- 
rate with  the  importance  of  this  phase  of  agriculture  can  be 
conducted.  The  dairying  industry  is  developing  rapidly  in 
all  sections  of  the  state  and  numerous  problems  in  con- 
nection with  the  feeding  of  dairy  cows,  manufacturing  of 
butter  and  cheese,  and  the  feeding  of  calves  as  well  as  in- 
vestigations along  the  lines  of  sanitation  as  applied  to  the 
dairy  industry,  should  be  conducted. 

DIVISION  OF  ENTOMOLOGY  AND  ZOOLOGY 

The  work  of  this  division  is  being  conducted  under  five 
regularly  organized  projects. 

Progressive  Immunity  of  Insects  to  Insecticides. 

This  is  a project  dealing  with  the  increased  resistance 
seemingly  shown  by  the  San  Jose  scale  and  other  insects  to 
insecticides.  Investigations  were  conducted  with  the  view  to 
determine  causes  responsible  for  this  resistance,  and  work 
was  largely  carried  on  during  the  past  year  by  the  Ento- 
mologist, working  at  the  Laboratory  for  Experimental  Evo- 
lution at  Cold  Spring  Harbor,  L.  I.,  N.  Y.,  and  at  the  Bussey 
Institution,  Harvard  University.  Field  work  along  the  same 
lines  was  conducted  in  this  state  by  the  Assistant  Ento- 
mologist. The  Gypsy  Moth  was  also  selected  as  material 
for  experimentation  along  these  lines.  It  has  not  been  found 
possible  to  artificially  produce  any  considerable  immunity  to 
arsenic. 

Interesting,  altho  inconclusive,  results  have  been  ob- 
tained in  similar  experiments  upon  the  San  Jose  scale,  some 
of  the  results  of  which  were  published  in  the  Journal  of 
Economic  Entomology,  7:167  (April,  1914). 

Opportunity  was  afforded,  while  the  Entomologist  was 
working  in  the  East,  for  a study  of  the  methods  of  spraying 
for  the  Codling  Moth  and  other  insect  pests  by  eastern  in- 
vestigators. A co-operative  experiment  on  Spraying  for  Cod- 
ling Moth  was  arranged  with  the  New  York  Experiment 
Station  at  Geneva,  N.  Y.,  the  results  of  which  show  that  the 


14 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


methods  of  application  devised  at  the  Washington  Station 
are  superior  to  those  in  vogue  in  the  East. 

Colorado  Potato  Beetle. 

This  project  was  established  during  the  year  owing  to 
the  fact  that  the  Colorado  potato  beetle  has  finally  estab- 
lished itself  within  our  state.  Owing  to  the  change  in  en- 
vironmental conditions  from  those  which  obtain  in  the  home 
of  this  insect  in  the  blast,  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  insti- 
tute a series  of  experiments  and  observations  here  with  the 
view  of  controlling  the  pest.  These  studies  and  experi- 
ments have  been  conducted  thruout  the  year  and  are  still 
under  way. 

It  was  found  that  there  are  two  broods  or  generations 
of  the  beetles  during  the  season ; the  maximum  of  the  first 
brood  being  about,  the  last  week  of  June,  and  of  the  second 
brood  about  the  middle  of  August.  These  dates  would,  how- 
ever, vary  somewhat  with  the  season.  In  the  experimental 
work  with  sprays  for  the  control  of  the  larvae,  the  follow- 
ing tests  were  made,  all  of  which  give  satisfactory  results : 

Inasmuch  as  the  weaker  strength  of  each  of  these  poi- 
sons gave  perfect  results  where  carefully  applied,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  the  stronger  and  more  expensive  sprays  are  en- 
tirely unnecessary  and  inadvisable. 

Paris  green:  1 lb.  to  100  gallons  of  water;  1 to  75;  1 to  05; 
and  1 to  50. 

Arsenate  of  lead  past:  1 lb.  to  50  gallons  of  water;  1 to  35; 
and  1 to  25. 

Powdered  arsenate  of  lead:  1 lb.  to  100  gallons  of  water;  1 
to  50. 

Arsenite  of  zinc:  1 lb.  to  200  gallons  of  water;  and  1 to  100. 

Root  Maggots. 

The  experiments  on  root  maggot  control,  begun  in  the 
year  1913  at  Vashon  Island,  Western  Washington,  were  con- 
tinued throughout  the  summer.  The  results  of  these  experi- 
ments indicated  that  of  the  various  materials  used,  the  most 
effective  ti'eatment  to  prevent  the  flies  from  laying  their  eggs 
on  and  about  the  cabbage  plants  was  to  scatter  naphtha- 
lene flakes  about  the  plants,  at  the  rate  of  one  teaspoonful 
to  each  plant,  every  eight  or  ten  days.  This  treatment,  how- 
ever, cannot  be  recommended  without  further  verification. 

During  the  present  season  expei'iments  were  begun  at 
the  College  gardens  on  control  of  the  root  maggot,  but  no 
results  were  obtained,  owing  to  the  fact  that  there  were  few 
maggots  present.  It  was,  howevei*,  determined  that  naphtha- 
lene may  be  detrimental  to  the  life  of  the  cabbage  plants, 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


15 


and  further  tests  are  necessary  along  this  line  before  this 
substance  can  be  recommended. 

Endoparasitism. 

Most  of  the  work  on  this  project  during  the  past  year 
has  consisted  of  a closer  study  of  material  previously  pre- 
pared. There  being  no  equipment  in  the  way  of  an  in- 
sectary  for  the  rearing  of  parasites  and  hosts,  this  necessary 
phase  of  the  work  could  not  be  carried  on,  and  accurate 
data  could  not  be  obtained.  It  was  necessary  to  follow  a 
more  or  less  haphazard  method  of  securing  parasitized  ma- 
terial. The  study  on  this  project  has  been  so  far  largely 
confined  to  the  parasitism  of  the  aphides,  or  plant  lice.  Con- 
siderable study  has  been  made  in  a comparative  way  on 
the  tissues  of  normal  and  parasitized  aphids,  and  many  rec- 
ords and  drawings  made  to  show  the  difference  between 
normal  tissues  and  jiarasitized  tissues. 

The  work  of  the  project  is  greatly  hampered  from  lack 
of ' an  insectary,  tho  considerable  progress  has  been  made 
upon  this  line  of  work. 

Bud  Weevils. 

This  project  deals  with  numerous  beetles  inhabiting  the 
sage-brush  districts  of  Washington  which  cause  more  or 
less  damage  to  the  buds  and  young  twigs  of  fruit  trees  on 
new  land.  The  life  history  and  habits  of  a large  number  of 
species  of  these  insects  has  been  studied  and  the  work  of 
the  project  brought  to  a conclusion.  The  results  of  this 
project  will  be  published  very  shortly  in  a technical  bulletin 
of  the  Experiment  Station. 

The  Columbian  Ground  Squirrel. 

The  work  of  the  zoologist  has  been  confined  exclusively 
to  a project  dealing  with  the  life  history,  hibernation  habits, 
food,  period  of  gestation,  prolificacy,  natural  enemies,  etc., 
of  the  Columbian  Ground  Squirrel,  Citellus  columbianus.  In 
connection  with  this  some  work  has  also  been  done  upon 
the  Townsend  Squirrel,  C.  Tovpnsendi,  which  inhabits  in  part 
the  same  district  as  the  Columbian  Ground  Squirrel. 

The  work  of  this  project  has  been  carried  on  approx- 
imately five  years,  during  which  time  a very  large  amount 
of  valuable  information  has  been  obtained  in  regard  to  these 
animals. 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  work  has  been  almost 
wholly  of  a scientific  character,  being  conducted  under  the 
Adams  fund,  the  information  obtained  has  been  of  such  value 


Fig.  III.  Some  of  the  new  Budweevils,  or  fruit  tree  destroying- 
insects,  which  were  investigated  under  the  Budweevil  project.  Some 
of  these  are  new  as  orchard  pests,  while  others  are  entirely  new  to 
science.  Efficient  methods  of  control  have  been  found  for  these 
insects.  These  weevils  have  no  common  names.  The  scientific 
names  are  as  follows: 

1.  Tosastes  cinerascens  Pierce. 

2.  Mimetes  setulosus  Schon. 

8.  Melamomphus  luteus  Horn. 

4.  Panscopus  aequalis  Horn. 

f).  Geoderces  melanothrix  Kirby. 

6.  Mylacus  saccatus  Leconte. 

7.  Cercopeus  artemisiae  Pierce. 

8.  Tychius  lineellus  Leconte. 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


17 


as  to  suggest  valuable  methods  of  eradication  of  these  ani- 
mals, which  have  proven  an  agricultural  pest  of  no  mean 
importance  in  the  Palouse  Country. 

The  results  of  the  investigation  are  at  the  present  time 
being  prepared  for  publication,  and  will  very  shortly  appear 
as  a technical  bulletin  of  the  Ex'^eriment  Station. 

In  addition  to  the  above  mentioned  regular  projects, 
the  members  of  the  staff  of  this  division  have  rendered  valu- 
able assistance  to  agriculture  in  many  ways  during  the  year, 
by  visiting  different  portion  of  the  state  which  were  having 
trouble  with  insect  pests.  Notable  among  these  was  an  in- 
vestigation concerning  a report  of  the  Alfalfa  Weevil  in 
this  state.  The  weevil  had  been  reported  from  several  dis- 
tricts of  the  state  and  an  investigation  was  at  once  made  by 
the  Assistant  Entomologist.  Careful  investigations  of  the 
alfalfa  fields  of  the  districts  in  question  failed  to  find  the 
slightest  evidence  of  the  insect,  the  reports  evidently  having 
originated  from  persons  mistaking  certain  small  ground 
beetles  for  alfalfa  weevils. 

As  a result  of  this  scare  a popular  bulletin  (No.  70) 
was  prepared,  describing,  by  means  of  illustrations  and  de- 
scriptions, the  alfalfa  weevil  with  the  view  of  enabling 
farmers  to  identify  the  insect  in  case  it  should  appear.  Hap- 
pily, the  state  thus  far  has  been  entirely  free  from  this  pest. 

Investigation  and  advice  has  also  been  given  in  the  fruit 
districts  in  regard  to  the  handling  of  aphis  and  other  insect 
pests. 

During  the  early  part  of  the  fiscal  year,  an  unusual  out- 
break of  grasshoppers  was  reported  in  the  valleys  of  the 
Snake  and  Columbia  Rivers.  The  Assistant  Entomologist 
was  at  once  detailed  to  make  an  investigation  of  the  trouble, 
and  devise  means  for  controlling  the  pest.  The  latter  was 
accomplished  very  largely  by  the  use  of  bran  mash  contain- 
ing poisonous  materials,  chiefly  arsenic.  Countless  numbers 
of  the  grasshoppers  were  thus  killed  but  the  outbreak  was 
reported  to  the  Station  too  late  to  save  all  the  crops. 

A similar  outbreak  of  the  Coulee  Cricket,  an  insect 
native  to  North  Central  Washington  was  reported  from  Grant 
and  Douglas  Counties.  The  Coulee  Cricket,  while  a pest 
of  considerable  local  importance,  does  not  work  over  wide 
areas.  Large  numbers  of  the  animals  will  appear,  covering 
areas  of  a few  square  miles,  and  at  the  time  cause  consider- 
able damage  to  crops ; in  fact,  virtually  destroying  the  crops 
of  the  districts  infested.  It  Avas  found  by  the  Entomologist, 
however,  that  the  trouble  could  be  greatly  alleviated  by  the 


18  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

plowing  of  a trench  about  the  infested  fields  and  thus  prevent 
the  migration  of  the  insect,  which  is  not  able  to  fly.  These 
furrows  are  plowed  with  the  vertical  side  of  the  trenches 
toward  the  crop  to  be  protected.  The  insects  seem  ‘ to  be 
unable  to  climb  the  AValTof  the ‘furrow,  and  while  collected 
in  this  furrow  can  be  killed  in  va'rious  ways. 

DIVISION  OF  , FARM  CROPS 

In  the  Division  of  Farm  Ci'ops,  Avork  is  being  conducted 
upon  five  projects.  The  oldest  of  these  projects  is  one  started 
in  1899  by  Professor  W.  J:  Spillman  on  rotation  and  tillage. 
The  work  was  conducted  upon  thirty  different  plots, 
each  receiving  different  treatment 'from  the  standpoint  ' of 
fertilization,  tillage,  time  of  seeding  and  crop  rotation.  These 
plots  demonstrate  some  valuable  facts  with  reference  to  grain 
production,  crop  rotation,  and  fertilizer  application  in  the 
Palouse  Country.  These  experiments, 'showing  the  results  of 
fifteen  years’  work,  Avill  be  published  as  a bulletin  of  the 
Experiment  Station  at  an  early  date. 

For  a number  of  years  there  has  been  a project  in  the 
Experiment  Station  known  as  ‘‘Cereal  Investigations.”  The 
project,  for  convenience  in  administration,  has  been  divided 
into  three  neAV  ones,  each  dealing  Avith  its  specific  lines  of 
work;  namely:  (1)  variety  testing;  (2)  increase  and  distri- 
bution of  seed;  (3)  inheritance  studies,  the  last  mentioned 
being  conducted  upon  the  Adams  fund. 

There  has  also  been  approved  in  this  division  during  the 
past  year  a new  project,  Forage  Investigations. 

Variety  Testing. 

The  project  on  Variety  Testing  includes  the  testing  of 
varieties  and  groAving  selections  of  Avinter  Avheat,  Avinter 
barley,  spring  Avheat,  spring  barley,  spring  oats,  field  peas, 
corn,  soy  beans,  sorghum,  rye,  millet,  flax,  and  buckAvheat. 
The  Avork  Avith  sorghum,  rye,  and  buckAvheat  Avas  started  in 
1914.  Work  Avith  the  other  crops  is  being  conducted  in  a 
method  similar  to  that  of  previous  years. 

Winter  Wheat.  One  hundred  seven  strains  of  winter 
wheat  Avere  tested  in  rod  rows  in  triplicate  in  1913.  Of 
these  the  Old  Washington  Turkey  Red,  No.  226,  gave  the 
highest  yield.  Thirty-six  of  the  least  desirable  ones  AA^ere 
dropped  and  fourteen  neAv  ones  added  for  the  1914  crop. 
During  1913,  thirty  hybrid  strains  of  winter  wheat  were 
tested  in  1-16  acre  field  plots.  Hybrid  143  Avas  used  as  a 
check.  Washington  No.  588,  a hybrid  of  Turkey  and  Winter 
Fife,  gave  the  largest  yield  (55,7  bu.)  per  acre.  Hybrid  143, 


20  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

however,  ^ave  the  highest  yield  (49.5  hu.)  per  acre  as  an 
average  for  four  years.  On  the  completion  of  this  four-year 
record,  nineteen  of  the  thirty  hybrid  strains  were  dropped. 
Eleven  of  the  hybrid  strains  were  continued  in  1914  in  com- 
parison with  ten  commercial  standard  varieties  and  five  new 
hybrids  all  having  been  tested  in  the  nursery  in  1913.  They 
were  planted  in  1-20  acre  plots  in  duplicate,  Hybrid  143 
again  being  used  as  a check.  The  five  new  hybrids  from 
the  nursery  were  the  highest  yielders  among  the  hybrids  in 
the  nursery  and  are  being  tested  in  both  the  1-20  acre  plots 
in  duplicate  and  in  the  triplicate  rod  rows  in  the  nursery, 
as  are  all  the  1-20  acre  field  plots. 

Twelve  varieties  of  winter  wheat  wer^?  tested  at  the 
Eitzville  Station  in  1913.  Jones’  Winter  Fife  gave  the 
highest  yield.  These  twelve,  with  the  addition  of  Turkey 
Red,  were  planted  for  the  1914  test. 

Winter  Barley.  Twenty  new  hybrids  of  beardless  winter 
barley  were  grown  in  1913.  They  winter  killed  badly,  but 
from  the  three  most  vigorous  strains,  ten  plants  were  se- 
lected and  planted  in  the  fall.  They  all  came  thru  the 

winter  well  and  are  looking  promising.  Their  awnless  char- 
acter should  make  them  desirable. 

Four  standard  varieties  of  bearded  winter  barley  are 
being  tested  in  1-20  acre  field  plots.  Tapps  Winter  shows 
stiffest  straw,  largest  heads,  and  most  vigorous  growth. 

Spring  Wheat.  Ninety-seven  strains  of  spring  wheat 

were  grown  in  rod  rows  in  triplicate  in  1913.  Red  Allen 
gave  the  heaviest  yield.  Thirty-seven  of  the  poorest  strains 
were  omitted  from  the  1914  planting  and  twenty-nine  new 
ones  from  various  sources  were  added.  Thirteen  of  the 

best  spring  wheats  are  being  grown  in  field  plots  in  1914. 
There  were  no  field  tests  of  spring  wheat  in  1913. 

Spring  Barley.  Twenty-nine  strains  of  spring  barley 

were  tested  in  rod  rows  in  triplicate  in  1913.  California 
Centgener  No.  3318  (Wash.  No.  189)  gave  the  largest- yield 
but  has  weak  straw.  These  strains  were  all  included  in  the 
1914  planting  with  thirteen  new  ones. 

Oats.  Fifty  strains  of  oats  were  tested  in  rod  rows  in 
triplicate  in  1913.  Danish  (Wash.  No.  141)  was  the  highest 
yielder,  with  Banner  (Wash.  No.  179),  a new  importation 
from  Scotland,  as  a close  second. 

Field  Peas.  Eiq’ht  varieties  of  field  peas  were  tested  in 
1-20  acre  plots  in  1913.  Amaroti  variety  gave  the  highest 


two  shocks  are  the  product  of  equal  sized  plots.  Both  plots  have  grown  fall  wheat 
annually  beginning  with  1899,  the  only  difference  in  treatment  being  an  application 
of  barnyard  manure  annually  at  the  rate  of  10  tons  per  acre  to  plot  at  readers  left 
with  none  applied  to  plot  at  right.  The  average  yield  from  1899  to  1915  for  the 
manured  plot  was  46.6  bushels,  and  for  the  unmanured  plot  23.4  bushels. 


22  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL^EXPERIMENTlSTATION 

jaeld.  Five  of  these  and  one  additional  variety  are  included 
in  the  1914  test. 

Corn.  An  ear-row  test  of  two  varieties  of  corn  (Windus 
White  and  Thayer  Yellow)  was  planted  in  1914.  The  ear- 
row  test  includes  twenty-five  ears  of  each  variety  and  is 
planted  in  duplicate.  The  purpose  of  this  test  is  to  purify 
the  variety  and  make  selections  of  the  highest  yielding 
strains.  Three  rows,  each  of  five  rates  of  thickness,  were 
planted  of  each  variety  of  corn. 

Five  varieties  of  soy  beans,  thirteen  varieties  of  sor- 
ghum, five  varieties  of  rye,  three  varieties  of  millet,  three 
varieties  of  flax,  and  one  variety  of  buckwheat  are  being 
tested.  The  varieties  of  rye  are  being  tested  in  triplicate 
rod  rows. 

Increase  and  Distribution  of  Seed. 

The  crops  that  have  proved  successful  at  Pullman,  in- 
cluding varieties  that  have  been  developed  at  the  Station, 
are  being  tested  in  many  counties  thruout  the  state.  This 
work  is  being  done  in  co-operation  with  farmers,  who  are 
willing  to  grow  the  crops  under  the  direction  of  the  Divi- 
sion of  Farm  Crops  and  furnish  reports  as  to  the  success 
of  the  crops  tested. 

Seeds  of  the  various  crops  were  sent  to  five  hundred 
and  ten  farmers  in  thirty-seven  counties  of  Washington.  A 
total  of  3,565  pounds  of  corn,  12,543  pounds  of  field  peas, 
1,084  pounds  of  oats,  11,680  pounds  of  wheat,  6,140  pounds 
of  winter  barley,  302  pounds  of  alfalfa,  198  pounds  of  clover, 
59  pounds  of  sorghum,  27  pounds  of  millet,  3 pounds  of 
marrow  cabbage,  and  1'  pound  of  Sudan  grass  were  dis- 
tributed among  these  farmers. 

Pure  seed  of  the  different  crops  are  again  being  grown 
to  continue  this  work.  Plantings  available  for  seed  distri- 
bution include  corn,  wheat,  oats,  barle}^,  and  field  peas.  De- 
sirable strains  of  alfalfa,  clover,  and  some  of  the  other  crops 
will  also  be  distributed. 

Inheritance  Studies. 

In  this  project,  investigations  upon  the  hereditary  per- 
formance of  different  varieties  of  wheat,  oats,  barley,  and 
rye  are  being  conducted.  The  characters  especially  dealt 
with  are  head  length,  color,  beards  resistance  to  disease,  re- 
sistance to  drouth,  milling  qualities,  hullessness,  number  of 
rows  in  head,  and  shape  of  grain.  The  project  is  one  which 
has  been  carried  on  for  a number  of  years  and  important 
results  have  been  obtaine'd,~some  of  Avhich  will  be  published 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


23 


A .4.^'  *1,' 

• Male 
Bf  o.wn*  s 
Glory 


Hybrid  Female 
(Pi)  Blue-  . ‘ 
Stem  169 


Awned 


long  li^ybrid  pure 
short  short 
Pure  Awnless 


long  hybrid  pu; 
short  sh 
Hybrid  Awnless 


Fig.  VI.  Inheritance  in  Cereals.  Some  Facts  Learned  in  Ex- 
perimenting with  Wheat  Hybrids. 

“A” — Parents  and  resulting  hybrid  the  first  year  after  the  cross 
is  made.  “B,”  “C”  and  “D” — The  resulting  types  when  this  new 
hybrid  is  planted.  They  occur  in  the  following  percentages: 

a — 61^%;  b — 12  1/2%;  c — 6%%;  d — 121/2%;  e — 25%;  f— 

121/2%;  g— 6%%;  h— 121/2%;  i— 6iA%. 

“a,”  “c,”  “g,”  and  “i”  breed  true  in  every  respect,  “b”  breeds 
true  to  beards  but  not  to  head  length,  giving  again  all  the  types 
in  “B”  in  the  ratio  1-2-1.  “d”  and  “f”  breed  true  to  length  but 

one-fourth  of  their  offspring  are  bearded,  “e,”  when  planted,  gives 
again  all  the  types  of  “B,”  “C,”  and  “D.”  “h”  breeds  true  to 

beardlessness  but  one-fourth  of  its  offspring  has  long  heads. 


24  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

in  a technical  bulletin  of  the  Experiment  Station  some  time 
during  the  coming  year. 

Forage  Investigation. 

In  this  project  the  work  is  carried  on  with  alfalfa, 
clover,  and  perennial  grasses.  The  work  is  being  conducted 
in  a well-arranged  forage  crop  nursery  and  deals  primarily 
with  the  breeding  and  selection  of  forage  crops  especially 
suitable  for  the  State  of  Washington. 

A project  dealing  with  the  effect  of  cultivation  on  the 
quality  of  wheat  is  carried  on  co-operatively  between  this 
Division  and  the  Chemistry  Division. 

DIVISION  OF  HORTICULTURE. 

The  Division  of  Horticulture  has  under  more  or  less 
active  investigation  thirteen  different  projects.  Some  of 
these  projects,  however,  are  of  such  a nature  that  they  can 
be  conducted  only  at  more  or  less  irregular  intervals.  Others 
depend  entirely  upon  the  season  for  their  prosecution.  Thus 
the  staff  of  the  division  is  not  attempting  to  conduct  work 
upon  such  a large  number  of  projects  continuously. 
Ornamental  Shrubs  and  Vines — Shade  and  Ornamental  Trees. 

These  two  projects  are  conducted  from  year  to  year  and 
have  to  do  with  observations  upon,  and  collection  of  data 
in  regard  to  trees,  shrubs,  vines,  etc.,  suitable  for  ornamental 
purposes  in  the  State  of  Washington.  A large  amount  of 
interesting  and  valuable  information  has  been  thus  col- 
lected and  it  is  planned  very  shortly  to  publish  some  of 
these  results. 

Orchard  Pollination. 

Work  of  this  project  was  done  in  the  Experiment  Sta- 
tion orchard  at  Pullman,  and  in  several  private  orchards  in 
the  Spokane  valley.  The  work  has  quite  definitely  shown 
this  year  the  blossoming  dates  of  the  most  popular  varieties 
of  apples  grown  in  the  Palouse  district,  in  the  Spokane  dis- 
trict, Wenatchee  district,  and  in  the  Yakima  district.  In 
this  it  is  evident  that  with  one  or  two  exceptions  the  varie- 
ties of  apples  blossom  so  nearly  at  the  same  date  that  inter- 
pollination can  take  place  between  any  of  the  common  com- 
mercial varieties.  The  work  on  self-sterility  of  varieties 
indicates  that  Spitzenburg,  Gravenstein,  Grimes  Golden,  Mc- 
Intosh, Oldenburg,  Rhode  Island  Greening,  Wagener,  White 
Winter  Pearrnain,  and  Winesap  may  under  certain  circum- 
stances prove  partially  self-sterile.  Delicious,  Spitzenburg, 
Jonathan,  King  David,  Lawyer,  Maiden  Blush,  Northern  Spy, 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


25 


Rhode  Island  Greening,  Tompkins  King,  Twenty  Ounce, 
Wagener,  Winesap,  Winter  Banana  and  Yellow  Transparent 
under  one  series  of  tests  proved  self-sterile.  It  is  not  be- 
lieved, however,  that  this  justifies  the'  conclusion  that  these 
varieties  are  self-sterile  even  to  a dangerous  degree  for 
planting  in  solid  blocks.  For  instance,  the  Ben  Davis  in 
a total  number  of  509  blossoms,  set  one  fruit.  This  variety 
is  known  in  many  sections  to  be  quite  satisfactorily  self- 
fertile  and  produces  abundantly  when  planted  in  large 
blocks.  The  Winesap  also  in  the  State  of  Washington  is 
fruiting  satisfactorily  in  several  large  blocks.  The  same 
can  be  said  of  other  varieties  in  the  list.  Some  of  the  other 
problems  involved  in  this  orchard  pollination  work  gave 
results  sufficient  to  be  of  interest,  but  not  sufficient  to  war- 
rant us  to  make  any  more  than  partial  report,  or  tentative 
statements.  The  general  study  of  the  work  indicates  that 
the  Delicious,  Grimes  Golden,  McIntosh,  and  Wagener  were 
among  the  best  pollinators.  The  Rome  Beauty  shows  espe- 
cially strong  as  a pollen  producer  and  is  an  excellent  va- 
riety to  plant  among  other  varieties  for  the  reason  that  it 
produces  an  abundance  of  pollen  and  blossoms  through  more 
than  the  ordinary  length  of  time.  The  Winesap  does  not 
seem,  from  the  tests  made,  to  be  an  especially  strong  va- 
riety for  pollen  production  nor  do  other  varieties  seem  to 
be  especially  receptive  to  the  Winesap  pollen.  This  is  a 
phase  of  the  work  that  can  only  be  tested  thoroughly  with 
several  years  of  work  in  the  future.  Indications  are  that 
while  several  of  the  varieties  may,  under  certain  circum- 
stances, be  partially  or  entirely  self-sterile,  under  normal 
orchard  planting  in  the  thickly  planted  orchard  sections, 
solid  blocks  may  be  considered  fairly  successful. 

Mendel’s  Law  in  Relation  to  the  Blackberry  and 
Raspberry  Hybrids. 

, The  work  of  this  project  is  purely  of  scientific  interest, 
dealing  entirely  with  principles  of  heredity.  The  work  as 
yet  has  not  been  carried  far  enough  to  warrant  any  conclu- 
sions. 

Winter  Dessication  of  Fruit  Trees. 

The  work  of  this  project  is  designed  to  determine  the 
infiuence  of  the  absence  of  humus  and  the  relation  of  water 
supply  and  plant  food  materials  to  winter  dessication.  The 
work  is  conducted  in  both  greenhouse  and  orchard  under 
controlled  conditions  as  well  as  by  observations  in  the  field. 
While  a large  amount  of  data  has  been  accumulated,  con- 


26  ;;WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


elusions  at  this  stage  of  the  investigation  are  probably  un- 
warranted. 

The  Keeping  Quality  of  Fruit. 

This  project  is  designed  especially  to  determine  the  re- 
lation of  moisture  content  of  soil  to  tlic  keeping  quality  of 
fi'uit,  especially  apples.  Ari*augements  wore  made  with  fruit 
growers  in  the  Spokane  valh'y  for  obtaining  fruit  from  trees 
that  received  an  over-supply  of  water  for  their  best  develop- 
inent;  and  from  trees  that  I'eceived  less  water  than  they 
would  use  to  good  advantage,  shov/ing  that  their  develop- 
ment and  the  development  of  their  fruit  was  very  pei'ceptibly 
retarded.  The  fruit  was  carefully  picked,  handled,  brought 
to  Pullman,  and  placed  in  storage. 

The  indications  are  that  the  fruit  developed  on  trees 
that  received  an  excess  of  Avater  haA^e  their  keeping  (piaii- 
ties  greatly  impaired,  the  tissue  is  soft,  easily  broken,  and 
goes  doAvn  (juickly  in  storage.  The  fruit  developed  on  trees 
receiving  approximately  the  cori'ect  supply  of  Avater  for 
nlevelopmeiit  of  medium  sized,  firm  fruit  have  the  }naximum 
keeping-  quality.  Pi'uit  developed  on  trees  that  recei\"ed  less 
Avater  than  needed  to  develop  their  frnit  to  a medium  size 
for  the  variety  is  inferior  in  (luality  and  tends  to  shrivel 
before  decaying,  and  at  no  time  presents  a satisfactory  ap- 
peai'ance. 

Methods  of  Top  Grafting. 

This  is  a project  designed  to  determine  the  )nost  suc- 
cessful methods  of  grafting  for  commercial  orchards.  The 
results  so  far  as  they  are  of  practical  value  have  been  re- 
ported in  Popular  Bulletin  No.  67.  The  Avork  of  the  project 
is  being  continued. 

Orchard  Cover  Crops. 

The  Avork  of  this  project  deals  Avith  the  relation  of  the 
various  cover  crops,  Avheat,  rye,  oats  vetch,  field  peas,  red 
clover,  etc.,  as  Avell  as  Auirious  methods  of  tillage,  to  the 
groAvth  and  productivity  of  apple  trees. 

Renovation  of  Prune  Orchards. 

This  project  has  for  its  purpose  the  determination  of  the 
cause  of  the  troublesome  variations  in  the  productivity  in 
prune  orehards  in  Western  Washington  and  methods  of  im- 
proving systems  of  prune  groAving  in  this  district.  The  re- 
sults of  the  investigations  thus  far  obtained  have  just  been 
published  in  Popular  Bulletin  No.  57. 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT;; 


27 


Variety  Testing  of  Vegetables.  - 

This  is  a project  designed  to  furnish  information  in  re- 
gard to  the  value  of  different  varieties  of  vegetables,  the 
seeds  of  which  are  offered  for  sale  in  the  state.  Garden 
tests  of  the  vegetables  were  made  as  Avell  as  tests  of  the 
seeds'  for  purity.  In  a very  large  numlier  of  cases  it  is 
found  that  the  seeds  offered  for  sale  are  not  true  to  Jianie 
and  In  many'  cases  have  a high  percentage  of  impurities. 

The  work  of  the  project  has  been  greatly  handicapped 
during  the  year  from  lack  of  funds. 

Improvement  of  the  Starch  Content  of  Potatoes. 

.This  is  a project  Avhich  was  completed  during  t;he‘'y^^il 
the  results  of  Avhich  Avill  very  shortly  be  pubkslied. 

Control  of  Pear  Blight. 

This  is  a project  having  to  do  A'dih  the  methods  of  or- 
chard .management  Avith  the  vieAv  to  controlling  this  serious 
pest  AAuth  a minimum  amount,  of  damage  to  orchard  and  loss 
of  crop.  It., also  includes' a study  of  the  vitality  of  the  pear 
, blight  bacillus,  its  resistance  to  dessication,  the^  methods  by 
jwhich  it  is  disseminated,  ^ 

NotAAdthstanding  the  fact  that  this  is  a field  of  AAU)rk  of 
the  greatest  importance  to  the  agricultural  interests  of.  the 
state  at  the.  present  time,  the  investigation  thus  far  con- 
ducted Avould  not  Avarrant  any  conclusions  in  regard  to  the 
control  of  the  disease  other  than  those  Avell-knoAAm, — namely, 
the  cutting  otic  of  the  blight  and  destruction  of  the  infected 
portions  of  the  tree  by.  burning. 

. V . Work  upon  projects  .dealing,  with  the  protection  of  or- 
chards from  frosts  and  the  application  of  winter  sprays,  has 
been  temporarily  suspended  on  account  of  lack  of  funds.  . 

V DIVISION  OF  IRRIGATION  ENGINEERING 

/ OAAung  to  shortage 'of  funds  no  investigations  have  ])een 
conducted  during'  the  year  in  this  division.  HoAvever,  the 
irrigation  agriculture  of  the  state  has  developed  to  such  a 
point  as  to  call  for  ‘extensiAm  iiwestigations  along  these  lines, 
and  it  is  hoped  that  funds  Avill  be  provided  during  the  en- 
suing year  Avhich  Avill  enable  the  Station  to  cope  Avith  some 
of  the  problems  involved. 

DIVISION  OF  SOIL  PHYSICS 

" This  Division  has  in  its  charge  three  active  projects. 


28  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

Co-operative  Meterological  Investigations. 

This  has  for  its  purpose  the  collection  of  climatological 
data  bearing  upon  the  agriculture  of  Washington. 

Dry  Farming  Investigations. 

This  project  deals  with  the  possibilities  and  best  methods 
for  the  conservation  of  moisture  in  the  semi-arid  regions  and 
the  methods  of  tillage  adapted  to  these  districts.  Some  of 
the  conclusions  arrived  at  as  a result  of  these  investigations 
are  embodied  in  Popular  Bulletin  No.  69,  published  during 
the  year. 

Soil  Moisture  Studies. 

By  far  the  larger  proportion  of  the  work  of  the  Divi- 
sion has  been  upon  this  project,  dealing  with  the  funda- 
mentals of  the  relation  of  soil  moisture  to  the  growth  of 
agricultural  plants'. 

Since  the  season  of  1911,  eighteen  agricultural  crops 
have  been  grown  each  season  in  lai'ge  tanks  (2  ft.  in  diameter 
by  3 ft.  deep)  to  determine  the  exact  amount  of  water  re- 
quired to  produce  a unit  of  dry  matter  for  each  crop.  In 
the  spring  of  1912  a tract  of  land  lying  south  of  the  city 
of  Pullman,  and  known  as  the  Hegnauer  Tract,  was  rented 
for  a period  of  five  years.  Three  and  one-half  acres  of  this 
tract  have  since  been  devoted  to  parallel  experiments  to  de- 
termine how  far  results  of  the  water  requirements  of  the 
same  crop  when  grown  in  field  plats  would  check  with  those 
found  under  control  in  large  tanks.  The  field  Avork  on  the 
Hegnauer  Tract  has  been  carried  on  in  duplicate  on  plats 
one-tAvelfth  of  an  acre  each.  Determination  of  the  moisture 
in  the  soil  in  each  plat  were  made  in  duplicate  (10  ft.  from 
each  end  of  each  plat)  for  each  foot  to  a depth  of  ten  feet, 
making  in  all  twenty  samples  of  soil  from  each  plat  Soil 
moisture  determinations  were  made  just  after  the  crops  were 
planted,  again  when  the  crops  were  about  one-half  grown, 
and  lastly,  just  after  the  crops  Avere  harvested.  The  water 
requirements  of  crops,  as  determined  from  field  plats,  haA'e 
checked  more  closely  with  those  determined  in  the  tank^ 
than  was  at  first  thought  possible.  Only  in  one  or  two  in- 
stances is  there  any  Avide  variation.  The  field  tests  are  being 
repeated  during  the  season  of  1914. 

The  water  required  to  produce  a unit  of  dry  matter  in 
any  given  plant  has  been  found  to  vary  widely.  No  tAvo  in- 
vestigators have  been  able  to  agree  on  the  same  amount. 
The  factors  which  cause  this  variation  in  Avater  require- 
ment has  been  given  considerable  study  by  this  Division 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


29 


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Fig.  VII.  Soil  Moisture  Investigations.  This  chart  shows  the 
depth  at  which  different  crops  take  moisture  and  food  materials 
under  climatic  and  soil  conditions  of  Eastern  Washington. 


Fig.  VIII.  This  chart  shows  the  effect  of  strength  of  plant  food 
solution  upon  the  proportional  development  of  roots  and  stalks, 
the  amount  of  crops  produced,  and  the  amount  of  water  required 
to  produce  a unit  of  dry  matter.  The  line  of  dashes  gives  the  per- 
centage of  whole  plant  as  stalks,  and  the  line  of  alternate  dots  and 
dashes  the  percentage  as  roots.  The  solid  line  gives  the  relative 
amount  of  crop  produced  in  the  different  strengths  of  solution. 
The  dotted  line  gives  the  amount  of  water  required  to  produce  a 
unit  of  dry  matter  from  each  strength  of  solution.  The  horizontal 
line  of  figures  at  the  top  gives  the  different  strengths  of  soil  solu- 
tion used  expressed  in  parts  of  1%.  The  vertical  line  of  figures  at 
the  left  expresses  the  relative  amount  of  roots,  stalks,  and  total 
crop  produced  for  each  strength  of  solution.  The  vertical  line  of 
figures  on  the  right  gives  the  pounds  of  water  required  to  produce 
a unit  of  dry  matter  from  each  strength  of  solution. 


30 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


(luring-  tlic  past  year,  ^side  from  the  kind  of  crop,  the 
most  important  influence  has  been  forriid  +o  be  the  strength 
of  the  soil  solution  in  plant  food.  Th(‘  richei*  the  i:vO:l  in 
available  plant  food,  the  less  will  be  the  water  re(iuirement 
to  produce  a unit  of  dry  matter  for  any  given  crop. 

The  work  is  conducted  with  reference  to  the  relation  of 
age  of  plants  to  water  requirement,  the  influence  of  the  pi*e- 
vious  crop,  the  evaporation  (including  the  various  factors, 
such  as  wind  velocity,  altitude,  temperature,  sunlight,  etc., 
which  influence  evaporation).  Especial  attention  is  given 
to  the  relation  of  soil  moisture  to  the  question  of  fertility. 
The  investigations  are  carried  on  both  in  laboratory  and  in 
field.  The  field  experiments  are  conducted  upon  the  Station 
Farm  at  Pullman  and  upon  small  sub-stations,  established  for 


Pig.  IX.  This  (ihart  shows  the 
position  of  nitrates  in  the  soil  in  the 
spring  of  the  year.  The  nitrates  have 
been  leached  down  to  the  third  foot 
by  the  winter  rains.  The  vertical 
lines  represent  feet  in  depth,  while 
the  horizontal  lines  represent  the 
parts  of  nitrates  per  million  of  dry 
soil.  Distance  between  horizontal 
lines  expresses  10  parts  of  nitrates. 


this  purpose  solely,  at  Eitzville,  in  the  dry  belt,  and  at  Grand- 
view, in  the  irrigated  district.  The  Avork  has  been  prose- 
cuteci  actively  for  the  past  three  years  and  a vast  amount 
of  data  have  been  accumulated.  It  is  planned  to  publish 
during  the  current  year  a technical  bulletin  embodying  many 
of  the  results  of  this  investigation. 

In  addition^  to  the  work  of  the  three  above  mentioned 
projects,  this  Division  has  carried  on,  during  the  year,  a 
large  amount  of  Amluable  work  in  the  Avay  of  direct  assist- 
ance to  the  farmers  of  the  state.  A large  number  of  soil 
examinations  huve  been  made  from  samples  sent  to  the  Sta- 
tion Laboratory.  Personal  visits  have  also  been  made  by 
members  of  the  staff,  in  many  cases,  for  the  purpose  of 
giving  advice  and  assistance  concerning  soils.  One  of  the 
most  important  pieces  of  work  of  this  nature  Avas  a soil 
survey  of  the  Palouse  project.  This  survey  Avas  made  by 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


31 


the  Assistant  Soil  Physicist  at  the  reciuest  of  E.  C.  ^IcCiil- 
lough,  engineer  in  charge  of  the  survey  of  the  proposed 
Palouse  Project.  The  field  woi'k  of  the  siii'vey  was  com- 
pleted during  Jinip  of  the  year  in  question,  iho  the  report 
was  not  made  until  the  fore  part  of  the  current  year.  This 
work  proved  of  great  worth  to  those  determining  the  value 
of  the  lands  of  this  project  for  irrigation  purposes.  Th(‘ 
data  accumulated  from  this  survey,  of  course,  are  availal)le 
for  future  reference,  and  will  prove  of  great  value  in  giving 
advice  and  assistance  to  farmers  at  any  time  if  this  land  is 
brought  under  cultivation. 

DIVISION  OF  VETERINARY  SCIENCE 

This  Division  has  two  projects  under  investigation. 

Pernicious  Anemia  in  Horses. 

This  is  a project  upon  wliich  very  little  work  has  been 
done  during  the  year  owing  to  scarcity  of  diseased  horses. 

A Study  of  Redwater  (Hematuria)  in  Cattle 

This  is  a project  which  has  been  conducted  for  several 
years  by  the  Assistant  Veterinarian,  with  the  accumulation 


Pig.  XI.  An  inverted  bladder  of 
a cow  that  died  of  red  water.  This 
shows  to  good  advantage  the  char- 
acteristic lesions  occurring  on  the 
inner  lining  of  the  bladder. 


of  a large  amount  of  information  in  regard  to  the  disease. 
However,  the  causative  agent  in  the  disease  has  not  yet  been 
discovered.  The  results  of  this  investigation  were  published 


32 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


Fig.  X.  A cow  in  the  advanced  stages  of  red  water.  Photo- 
graphed about  forty-eight  hours  before  death. 


during  the  year  in  General  Bulletin  No.  112.  It  had  been 
planned  to  continue  the  work  along  these  same  lines,  laying 
especial  emphasis  upon  methods  of  control  and  treatment 
of  the  disease.  However,  owing  to  a large  amount  of  ad- 
vice given  from  the  Station  with  reference  to  the  disposition 
of  the  red  water  cattle,  it  has  become  almost  impossible  to 
obtain  sufficient  material  for  adequately  conducting  the  work 
without  the  expenditure  of  more  funds  than  the  Station 
would  be  warranted  in  putting  into  it. 

CO-OPERATIVE  WORK 

The  Experiment  Station  during  the  year  has  conducted 
a number  of  lines  of  co-operative  work.  An  experiment 
with  the  view  to  determining  the  effect  of  varying  condi- 
tions of  climate  and  soil  on  the  chemical  composition  of 
grain,  is  conducted  with  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture. In  this  experiment,  grains  of  different  varieties  are 
grown  at  several  experiment  stations  (North  Dakota,  South 
Dakota,  Minnesota,  Montana,  and  Washington).  Seed  pro- 
duced in  one  place  is  grown  in  another  for  comparison  with 
the  home-grown  seed,  and  records  kept  of  the  quality,  yield, 
date  of  coming  up,  date  of  heading,  date  of  ripening,  length 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


33 


of  fruiting  period,  amount  of  lodging,  susceptibility  to  smut 
and  rust,  etc.  The  exneriment  has  been  conducted  since  1909. 

In  the  Smut  Investigations  the  co-operation  of  the  Divi- 
sion of  Cereal  Investigations  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Indus- 
try, United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  was  had  to 
the  extent  of  $300  on  the  salary  of  an  assistant  pathologist. 

In  the  Division  of  Farm  Crops  over  500  farmers  co- 
operated in  the  testing  of  various  crops.  Something  over 
600  such  tests  were  made,  as  follows : 


Corn  352 

Field  Peas  92 

Alfalfa  100 

Clover  52 

Sorghum  20 

Total  016 


The  recent  organization  of  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Develop- 
ment, under  which  the  work  of  county  agriculturists  of  the 
state  is  conducted,  has  proven  an  efficient  co-operative  agent 
in  conducting  demonstration  work  and  making  various  prac- 
tical tests  of  crops  and  methods  originating  in  the  Experi- 
ment Station.  In  the  future,  this  agency  will  undoubtedly 
prove  the  most  efficient  that  has  yet  been  devised  for  car- 
rying the  results  of  scientific  investigation  to  the  farm,  and 
insuring  their  practical  application.  On  account  of  the  fact 
that  the  Director  of  the  Experiment  Station  is  also,  by  law. 
Director  of  the  Bureau,  the  closest  co-operation  between 
these  two  inifiortant  state  departments  ])ecomes  possible. 
(For  information  in  regard  to  this  line  of  work,  see  First 
Annual  Report  of  the  Weshington  Bureau  of  Farm  Develop- 
ment.) 

In  the  dissemination  of  literature  and  agricultural  in- 
formation, as  well  as  in  certain  lines  of  demonstration  work, 
the  new  State  Department  of  Agriculture  has  also  co-oper- 
ated in  an  effective  manner. 

The  new  Department  of  Dry  Land  Demonstration  and 
Experiment,  created  for  the  dissemination  of  information 
and  conducting  of  demonstrations  and  experiments  in  the 
semi-arid  portions  of  the  state,  has  also  proven  an  efficient 
co-operative  agent  in  the  solution  of  some  of  the  agricultural 
problems  of  the  dry  belt.  (See  the  First  Annual  Report  of 
the  Department  of  Dry  Land  Demonstration  and  Experi- 
ment.) 

On  account  of  the  fact  that  the  three  last  mentioned 
departments  are  of  recent  organization,  much  greater  results 


34 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


may  be  looked  for  in  these  lines  in  the  future  than  have 
been  obtained  during  the  past  year. 

The  Station  is  also  indebted  to  various  academic  de- 
partments of  the  College  for  efficient  aid  and  co-operation 
in  different  lines;  namely,  the  Chemistry  Department,  in 
analysis  of  soils,  feeds,  fertilizers,  etc. ; the  Department  of 
Botany,  in  the  sanitary  analysis  of  Avater,  the  examination 
of  seeds,  identification  of  plants,  etc. ; and  especially  to  the 
Extension  Department  in  the  distribution  of  literature  and 
agricultural  inf orinati  on. 

The  activities  of  the  various  agencies  for  agricultural 
extension,  especially  of  the  county  agriculturist,,  has  reacted 
in  a marked  manner  upon  the  Experiment  Station  in  bring- 
ing forcibly  to  the  attention  of  the  Station  new  and  impor- 
tant problems  and  increased  demands  for  agricultural  in- 
vestigation. 

DISSEMINATION  OF  INFORMATION 

An  effort  has  been  made  to  render  as  efficient  aid  as 
possible  to  the  farmers  by  the  dissemination  of  inform- 
ation from  the  Experiment  Station.  The  press  of  this 
and  adjacent  states  has  rendered  efficient  aid  along  these 
lines  and  has  proven  one  of  the  most  valuable  agencies  for 
the  dissemination  of  agricultural  knowledge.  In  carrying 
on  this  Avork  of  popularizing  the  results  of  the  investigations 
in  the  Experiment  Station,  something  over  five  million  pages 
of  printed  matter  have  been  sent  out  during  the  year.  In 
addition  to  this  large  quantity  of  printed  matter  distributed, 
the  various  members  of  the  staff,  during  the  fiscal  year,  have 
written  23,350  personal  letters  to  farmers  and  others  inter- 
ested in  agricultural  Avork.  These  letters  have  covered  a 
wide  range  of  information,  have  ansA\mred  definite  inquiries, 
and  have  been  productive  of  great  assistance  to  the  citizens 
of  the  state  and  at  a time  AAdien  assistance  AAms  most  needed. 

PUBLICATIONS 

During  the  year  the  Station  issued  tAvo  technical  bulle- 
tins, eighteen  popular  bulletins,  and  some  fifty  press  bulle- 
tins. EolloAAurig  are  brief  summaries  indicating  the  scope  and 
chai'acter  of  the  technical  and  impular  bulletins. 

General  (Technical)  Bulletins 

No.  112.  A Preliminary  Report  on  the  Investigations  of 
Red  Water  (Hematuria)  of  Cattle  in  Washington  by  J. 
W.  Kalkus. 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


35 


This  bulletin  is  a rather  detailed  report  of  several  years’ 
investigation,  carried  on  under  the  Adams  Fund,  on  red 
water  of  cattle  in  Western  Washington.  It  discusses  the 
etiology  of  the  disease  and  the  opinions  of  the  stock-raisers 
in  regard  to  it.  It  sets  forth  the  results  of  a series  of  inocu- 
lation experiments  designed  to  determine  whether  the  dis- 
ease is  infectious,  together  with  post-mortem  examination 
and  detailed  study  of  tissues  from  the  animals  inoculated. 
The  symptoms  of  the  disease  are  discussed  in  considerable 
detail,  as  are  a number  of  ])lood  examinations  taken  from 
the  diseased  animals.  A study  was  made  of  the  morbid 
anatomy  of  the  animals  and  suggestions  offered  for  treat- 
ment of  the  disease.  Unfortunately  it  has  not  yet  been  pos- 
sible to  ascertain  the  exact  cause  of  the  disease.  Some  evi- 
dence was  obtained  which  would  indicate  that  the  disease 
is  of  an  infectious  nature  and  ''although  some  drugs  seem 
to  render  temporary  relief,  treatment  as  a whole  has  been 
very  unsatisfactory.”  It  is  found  that  animals  once  affected 
with  the  disease  rarely  recover.  The  bulletin  is  illustrated 
with  colored  plates. 

No.  113,  entitled  "Plants  Used  for  Pood  by  Sheep  on 
the  Mica  Mountain  Summer  Range,”  is  a record  of  work  by 
R.  Kent  Beattie,  formerly  Botanist  of  the  Experiment  Sta- 
tion. The  bulletin  will  appeal  especially  to  the  larger  sheep 
owners;  that  is,  those  raising  sheep  on  the  range.  It  dis- 
cusses the  economical  use  of  the  forest  as  a grazing  ground 
and  gives  a large  amount  of  informatioii  of  value  to  owners 
pasturing  on  the  range,  as  Avell  as  to  foresters  and  those 
interested  in  forest  management.  A number  of  troublesome 
and  controverted  questions  in  regard  to  the  effects  of  sheep 
upon  the  forest  are  cleared  up  in  so  far  as  this  range  is 
concerned.  The  types  of  plants  used  as  a food  by  the  sheep 
has  been  the  subject  of  much  controversy  aiid  a good  many 
of  the  popular  notions  will  be  dispelled  by  this  piece  of  in- 
vestigation. 


Popular  Bulletins 

No.  53.  Cause  of  Variation  of  Per  Cent  of  Pat  of  Market 
Cream  fi'om  Farm  Separatoi's.  by  V.  R.  Jones,  Assistant  in 
Dairy  iVlanufactures. 

The  bulletin  explains  the  causes  of  variation  due  to 
effect  of  richness  of  milk ; speed  of  separator ; changes  in 
temperature;  rate  of  inflow;  amount  of  skim  milk  or  water 
used  to  flush  the  separator  bowl;  and  unbalanced  sepa- 
rators^ It  explains  how  a patron  can  calculate  within  a 


36 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


few  per  cent  what  his  cream  should  test  before  taking  it  to 
the  creamery.  Financial  loss  through  carelessness  in  hand- 
ling separators  is  pointed  out. 

No.  54.  Preserving  Eggs,  by  Geo.  A.  Olson,  Chemist. 

This  bulletin  gives  detailed  directions  for  the  prepara- 
tion of  water-glass  and  its  use  in  the  preservation  of  eggs. 

No.  55.  Cleanliness  and  Cold  as  Applied  to  the  pairy, 
by  A.  B.  Nystrom,  Dairy  Husbandman,  is  an  effort  to  im- 
prove the  sanitary  condition  of  the  dairies  of  the  state  by 
pointing  out  the  advantages  and  methods  of  improved  sani- 
tation. 

No.  56.  ‘‘Fire  Blight”  of  Pear  and  Apple,  by  John  G. 
Hall,  Plant  Pathologist,  calls  attention  to  the  necessity  of 
an  active  campaign  against  the  serious  disease  “pear  blight,” 
explains  the  appearance  of  the  disease  by  means  of  illustra- 
tions. and  discusses  in  detail  control  measures  and  methods 
of  combatting  the  disease. 

No.  57.  Prune  Growing  in  Southwestern  Washington, 
by  0.  M.  Morris,  Horticulturist,  is  the  result  of  investiga- 
tions conducted  in  prune  orchards  of  Clark  County  with  the 
view  to  ascertaining  the  causes  of  crop  failure  and  variations 
in  crop  from  year  to  year  and  variation  in  different  por- 
tions of  the  same  orchard.  The  bulletin  is  a tentative  and 
preliminary  report.  It  discusses  the  relative  value  of  dif- 
ferent varieties  of  prunes;  the  relation  of  soil  and  soil  cul- 
tivation, the  weathei;,  and  pruning  to  crop  failures.  From 
the  preliminary  investigations  it  would  seem  that  most  of 
the  trouble  arises  from  failure  to  properly  eultivate,  to  main- 
tain fertility,  and  to  properly  prune  the  orchards  in  question. 

No.  58.  Sheep  for  Washington  Farms,  by  R.  C.  Ashby, 
Animal  Husbandman. 

This  bulletin  is  designed  to  encourage  the  keeping  of 
a small  flock  of  sheep  upon  every  farm.  In  the  bulletin  the 
following  points  with  reference  to  sheep  husbandry  are  dis- 
cussed ; equipment ; plan  of  management ; size  of  flock ; 
choice  of  stock ; selection  of  ewe  and  ram ; age  to  bre'ed ; 
breeding;  fall  and  winter  care;  lambing;  feed  supply;  dock- 
ing and  castrating;  shearing;  dipping;  weaning;  summer 
care;  feeding  and  marketing;  feeds;  system  of  feeding;  buy- 
ing stock  to  feed;  mutton  for  farm  use;  killing  and  dressing 
sheep ; and  practical  experience  of  farmers  is  also  cited. 

No.  59.  Spraying  Calendar  for  1914,  by  John  G.  Hall, 
Plant  Pathologist,  and  M.  A.  Yothers,  .Assistant  Entomolo- 
gist, sets  forth  directions  for  treatment  of  fungous  diseases 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


37 


and  insect  pests,  including  definite  information  as  to  appear- 
ance of  trouble,  time  and  number  of  applications  of  sprays, 
as  well  as  formulae  for  preparing  same. 

No.  60.  Corn  Growing  in  Washington,  by  George  Sev- 
erance, Agriculturist,  sets  forth  the  advantage  of  corn  as 
a crop  in  the  agricultural  system  of  the  state.  Attention  is 
called  to  the  fact  that  a profitable  ci'op  of  corn  can  be  used 
in  place  of  the  summer  fallow,  so  populai*  in  ;manv  portions 
of  the  state.  A resume  of  the  investigations  of  corn  varie- 
ties and  culture,  planting,  and  development  of  acclimated 
strains  at  the  Experiment  Station  is  given,  and  also  of  co- 
operative work  carried  on  by  tlu  Station.  Recommendations 
are  made  in  regard  to  preparation  of  soils,  methods  of  seed- 
ing, cultivation,  selection  of  seed,  and  harvesting.  Emphasis 
is  laid  upon  the  value  of  coi*n  as  ensilage. 

No.  61.  The  Peach  Twig-Borcn*,  by  M.  A.  Yothers, 
Assistant  Entomologist,  gives  the  life  histoi\v,  habits,  and 
methods  of  control  of  this  insect  i)est.  The  bulletin  is  illus- 
trated. 

No.  62.  Potato  Growing  in  Washington,  by  O.  M. 
Morris,  Horticulturist,  J.  G.  Hall,  Plant  Pathologist,  and 
M.  A.  Yothers,  Assistant  Entomologist,  discusses  in  consider- 
able detail  the  various  problems  connected  Avith  potato  grow- 
ing in  the  Northwest.  Directions  are  given  in  regard  to 
preparation  of  soil,  planting  and  selection  of  seed,  use  of 
fertilizers,  cultivation,  the  selection  of  varieties,  etc.  The 
bulletin  is  illustrated  Avith  figures  of  the  various  potato 
diseases  and  the  insect  pests  of  the  potato.  Detailed  direc- 
tions are  given  for  combatting  these  pests. 

No.  63.  SAvine  Husbandry  in  Washington,  by  R.  C. 
Ashby,  Animal  Husbandman,  and  C.  F.  Monroe,  Assistant 
Animal  Husbandman,  sets  forth  the  advantages  of  swine 
raising  as  follows : 

(1)  Little  capital  is  required  to  get  a start — the  price 
of  one  grade  coav  Avill  buy  tAvo  to  four  bred  soavs  ; 

(2)  Quick  returns  are  secured- — the  first  crop  of  pigs 
may  be  made  ready  for  market  Avithin  a year  from  the  date 
of  breeding  the  soav; 

(3)  But  little  investment  is  required  in  buildings  and 
equipment ; 

(4)  Hogs  turn  Avaste  and  by-products  into  a valuable 
market  commodity. 

The  bulletin  discusses  the  relative  merits  of  all  the 
common  breeds  of  hogs  and  illustrates  these.  Directions  are 


38 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL’ EXPERIMENT  STATION 


given  for  starting  in  the  business,  selecting  stock,  feeding, 
breeding,  and  general  management  of  the  herd ; also  brief 
directions  for  ti*eatment  of  various  diseases. 

No.  64.  Winter  Sprays,  by  A.  L.  Melander,  Ento- 
mologist. 

This  bulletin  sets  forth  the  advantages  and  methods 
of  using  sulfur-lime  and  crude  oil  emulsions  as  orchard 
sprays.  Explanations  for  making  sulfur-lime  are  given  to- 
gether with  suggestions  for  modifying  the  sprays  to  meet 
certain  conditions. 

No.  65.  A postcard  bulletin  on  ‘‘Fire  Blight,”  by  J. 
G.  Hall  Pathologist,  designed  to  keep  before  the  fruit  grow- 
ers the  necessity  of  being  constantly  on  their  guard  in  com- 
batting the  blight.  It  calls  attention  to  the  following  facts: 

Blight  cannot  be  cured  by  spraying  or  injecting  ma- 
terial into  the  tree. 

Blight  can  be  stamped  out,  but  only  by  surgery. 

Blight  is  our  most  dangerous  fruit  disease. 

Every  citizen  should  aid  in  combatting  blight. 

No.  66.  Onion  Culture,  by  0.  M.  Morris.  Horticulturist, 
contains  a discussion  of  the  various  problems  connected  with 
the  production  of  onions  in  a commercial  way  in  this  state. 

No.  67.  Top  Grafting  of  Fruit  Trees,  by  0.  M.  Morris, 
Horticulturist,  and  C.  B.  Sprague,  Assistant  Horticulturist, 
sets  forth  the  various  methods  of  top  grafting  and  the  ad- 
vantages of  each.  Detailed  directions  are  given  for  grafting, 
these  being  supplemented  by  well-prepared  illustrations. 

No.  68.  Report  on  Chemical  Composition  of  Wheat,  by 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  Chemist. 

This'  is  a popular  resume  of  General  (Technical)  Bul- 
letin No.  Ill  on  the  influence  of  environmental  factors  on 
the  chemical  composition  of  wheat  and  also  the  results  of 
investigations  in  breeding  and  selection  for  nitrogen  con- 
tent carried  on  at  the  KStation  for  several  yeai’s  previous. 

No.  69.  Dry  Farhiing  in  Washington,  by  C.  C.  Thom, 
Soil  Physicist,  and  H.  F.  Holtz,  Assistant  Soil  Physicist,  dis- 
cusses the  problems  of  farming  in  the  semi-arid  districts  of 
the  upper  Columbia  River  valley.  The  bulletin  embodies 
the  results  of  some  of  the  investigations  conducted  in  the 
Division  of  Soil  Physics  for  several  years.  Suggestions  are 
made  in  regard  to  disking,  fall  plowing,  listing,  use  of  soil 
mulches,  the  general  treatment  of  soil,  sub-surface  packing, 
summer  fallowing,  etc.  The  Aveed  problem  and  the  blow 
problem  are  considered  as  Avell  as  the  problem  of  conserv- 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


39 


ing  the  humus  supply  in  the  dry  land  soils.  Data  are  given 
with  reference  to  the  nioistui*e  reciuirements  of  various  crops 
and  the  problem  of  keei:>ing  up  the  fertility  of  soils.  The 
bulletin  contains  a rainfall  map  of  the  state,  and  also  gives 
brief  suggestions  in  regard  to  crops  suitable  to  the  various 
rainfall  belts. 

No.  70.  The  Alfalfa  Weevil,  by  AV.  0.  Ellis,  Assistant 
in  Entomology,  illustrates  and  describes  the  various  stages 
in  the  life  history  of  the  alfalfa  weevil,  and  also  discusses 
its  habits.  AVhile  the  alfalfa  Aveevil  is  not  native  to  the  State 
of  Washington  and  has  never  been  found  in  the  state,  this 
bulletin  is  designed  to  enable  the  farmei’s  to  recognize  the 
insect  should  it  appear,  and  suggests  methods  of  control- 
ling it. 

In  addition  to  the  eighteen  popular  bulletins  there  was 
distributed  an  edition  of  twenty-five  thousand  bulletins  on 
‘‘Pasture  and  Grain  Crops  foi'  Hogs  in  the  Pacific  Northwest,’’ 
prepared  by  Byron  Hunter  and  printed  by  the  United  States 
Department  of  Agriculture. 

AGRICULTURAL  NEEDS  OF  THE  STATE 

Notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  agricultural  develop- 
ment of  the  State  of  AVashington  is  in  its  infancy,  its  evolu- 
tion is  exceedingly  rapid.  It  must  also  be  borne  in  mind 
that  the  agricultural  conditions  of  the  state  are  extremely 
diverse,  probably  more  so  than  in  any  other  state  in  the 
Union,  excepting  possibly  California.  These  facts  make  the 
demands  upon  the  Experiment  Station  for  the  solution  of 
agricultural  and  scientific  problems  very  great.  As  will  be 
noted  from  the  financial  report,  the  resources  of  the  Station 
are  $15,000  from  Adams  Fund,  all  of  Avhich  must  be  used  in 
research  upon  fundamental  principles  of  scientific  agricul- 
ture ; $15,000  from  Hatch  Fund,  Avhich  may  be  used  for 
experimental  work  and,  in  part,  for  the  dissemination  of 
agricultural  knoAvledge ; and  $9,000  from  State  Fund, 
Avhich  may  be  used  in  any  of  these  lines,  as  Avell  as  in  the 
conducting  of  demonstrational  work. 

One  conversant  Avith  the  agricultural  needs  of  the  state 
and  the  problems  confronting  the  Experiment  Station  for 
solution,  is  at  once  impressed  Avith  the  fact  that  these  funds 
are  wholly  inadequate  to  meet  the  situation.  A comparison 
with  other  states  Avill  reveal  the  fact  that  Washington  is 
not  supporting  its  Experiment  Station  as  is  being  done  else- 
where. Neighboring  states  with  smaller  population  and  less 


Fig.  XII.  Xew  Mechanic  Arts  Building.  (Ready  for  occupancy  in  September.) 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


41 


resources  are  putting  much  larger  amounts  into  their  Sta- 
tions for  the  improvement  of  agricultural  conditions. 

When  it  is  realized  that  the  state  expends  for  the  care 
of  its  defective  members  of  society  (criminals,  insane,  etc.) 
annually  $1,500,000  as  compared  with  about  one-fifth  this 
amount  for  its  Agricultural  College  (including  Experiment 
Station),  one  need  have  no  hesitancy  in  asserting  that  a 
liberal  increase  should  be  made  for  the  support  of  the  Ex- 
periment Station  and  for  the  benefit  of  those  progressive 
and  wide-awake  farmers  who  are  the  producing  members 
of  society. 

There  is  a crying  need  for  increase  in  almost  every 
phase  of  the  Experiment  Station  work.  The  Division  of 
Chemistry  of  the  Station  is  totally  unable  to  cope  with  the 
demands  made  upon  it  for  assistance.  In  Animal  Husbandry 
and  Dairying  additional  investigations  are  needed  in  feed- 
ing and  breeding  to  meet  the  conditions  peculiar  to  this 
state.  A reduction  of  the  amount  of  live  stock  of  the  United 
States  ten  to  twenty  per  cent  during  the  past  decade  empha- 
sizes this  fact  most  forcibly. 

In  the  Division  of  Soil  Physics  there  is  constant  demand 
for  assistance  which  cannot  be  given,  owing  to  lack  of  suf- 
ficient funds.  These  demands  are  both  for  investigation  and 
routine  examination  of  soils. 

In  the  Division  of  Farm  Crops  there  -is  needed  extra 
help  for  the  purpose  of  putting  the  results  of  the  breeding 
and  testing  experiments  of  the  Division  into  the  hands  of 
the  practical  farmer. 

In  Horticulture,  the  demand  for  work  on  the  various 
critical  problems  of  the  horticultural  industry  is  probably 
greater  than  that  in  any  other  agricultural  line.  The  prob- 
lem of  the  handling  of  by-products;  questions  of  orchard 
management;  storage,  etc.,  call  for  greatly  increased  equip- 
ment. 

The  constant  appearance  of  new  insect  and  fungous  pests 
tax  the  resources  of  the  Division  of  Entomology  and  Botany 
far  beyond  their  present  capacity.  Additional  men  are  needed 
in  both  of  these  departments  for  meeting  these  problems.  The 
annual  loss  from  wheat  smut  in  the  grain  belt  of  Washing- 
ton makes  this  problem  of  pressing  importance,  and  calls  for 
increased  funds  and  elforts  toward  its  solution. 

Several  animal  diseases  of  the  State  of  Washington  are 
needing  attention  which  the  Division  of  Veterinary  Science 
is  unable  to  give  on  account  of  limited  funds. 

The  early  development  of  agriculture  in  the  State  of 


42  WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

Washington  was  in  two  localities;  the  high  plateaus  of  the 
Palouse  aiid  Walla  Districts  in  Eastern  Washington,  and 
certain- valleys  in.  the  western  portion  of  the  state.  Scien- 
tific assistance  in  these  two  districts  has  been  provided  for 
by  the  establishment  of  the  main  Exp.eriment  Station  at 
Pullman,  and  a well-equipped  branch  station  at  Puyallup. 

The  last  two  decades,  however,  has  seen  the  develop- 
ment of  two  almost  entirely  new  lines  of  agriculture  in  the 
dryer  portions  of  the  upper  Columbia  valley.  Here  the  agri- 
cultural problem  is  of  two  types;  one  in  the  region  where 
there  is  not  water  for  irrigation,  a problem  of  dry  land 
agriculture;  the  other,  in  the  valleys  of  this  district,  an 
irrigation  problem.  With  the  present  facilities  at  the  com- 
mand of  the  Station,  it  is  impossible  to  adequately  cope 
with  these  two  relatively  new  agricultural  needs.  There 
should  be  established  two  additional  substations : one,  for 
the  study  of  the  problem  of  dry  land  agriculture ; the  other, 
for  investigations  in  irrigation  agriculture.  These  should  be 
located  with  extreme  care  in  typical  dry  land  and  irriga^ 
tion  districts.  The  work  conducted  in  the  dry  land  station 
should  be  in  connexion  with  the  conservation  of  soil  moist- 
ure, tillage,  the  weed  problem,  the  testing  and  introduction 
of  suitable  varieties  of  crops,  the  encouragement  of  the  live- 
stock industry,  the  encouragement  of  tree  planting,  and,  in 
general,  the  improvement  of  the  living  conditions  in  this 
portion  of  the  state.  From  this  station  a great  deal  of  dem- 
onstration work  should  be  conducted.  The  need  of  facilities 
for  performing  this  work  has  become  so  pressing  that  a 
number  of  individuals  interested  contributed,  heavily  from 
their^  personal  means  for;  the  establishment  of  a private  dem- 
onstration farm  near  Cunningham,  Washington.  While  this 
farm  has  been  productive  of  much  good  in  its  immediate 
vicinity,  it  is  handicapped  from  lack  of  scientific  supervision 
and  facilities  for  the  dissemination  of  the  information  ob- 
tained there.  - . 

In  the  irrigation  station  there  should  be  handled  the 
various  problems  in  connexion  with  fruit  by-products,  the 
duty  .of  water,  the  handling  of  drainage,  the  various  . prob; 
lems  concerned  with  the  maintenance  of  soil  fertility,  and* 
the  elimination  of  alkali,  as  well  as  the  numerous  i^roblems 
connected  with-  orchard  management,  fungous  and  insect 
pests,  and  general  problems  of  farm  management  suitable  to 
the  irrigated  districts. 

These  two  stations  should  be  made  sub-stations  of  the 
main  station,  thus  giving  them  the  advantage  of  the  federal 


TWENTY-FOURTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


43 


funds  appropriated  for  the  main  station  at  Pullman  and 
the  advantages  of  the  fundamental  investigations  conducted 
there;  also  the  use  of  the  franking  privileges,  and  the  elim- 
ination of  the  unnecessary  duplication  of  effort  and  expense. 

Unless  two  such  stations  are  established  in  the  not  very 
distant  future,  the  great  agricultural  district  included  in 
the  dry,  central  portion  of  our  state  is  sure  to  be  greatly 
handicapped  in  its  economic  development.  When  one  real- 
izes that  from  a single  shipping  point  in  the  Dry  Belt  more 
wheat  has  been  shipped  annually  than  from  any  other  point 
in  the  world,  and  that  from  a single  irrigated  valley  in  this 
district  agricultural  products  exceeding  eight  millions  of 
dollars  are  produced  annually,  the  importance  of  the  upper 
Columbia  River  valley  as  a food-producing  district  is  ap- 
parent. When  one  is  also  confronted  with  the  fact  that  in 
many  parts  of  this  district  the  crop  yields  have  greatly  de- 
creased during  the  past  few  years,  due  to  improper  agricul- 
tural methods,  the  necessity  of  prompt,  scientific  aid  in  the 
development  of  this  district  becomes  equally  apparent. 

In  addition  to  the  above,  there  is  greatly  needed  in  the 
main  station  at  Pullman,  a glass  house  for  conducting  work 
in  plant  pathology  and  physiology,  and  an  insectary  for 
work  upon  the  constantly  increasing  varieties  of  insect  pests 
in  the  state. 


SUMMARY  OF  PORTION  OF  STATION  WORK 


Number  of  Projects  under  Investigation 

Number  of  Farmers  Co-operating 

Number  of  Pounds  of  New  and  Improved  Seed 

Distributed  

Number  of  Plant  Diseases  Investigated 

Number  of  Newspapers  Supplied  with  Material 

Weekly  

Editions  of  Bulletins  Issued: 

Technical  

Popular  

Newspaper  

Number  of  Names  Added  to  Mailing  List  During 

the  Year  

Number  of  Names  on  Mailing  List 

Number  of  Bulletins  Distributed  Upon  Special 

Request  

Number  of  Pages  of  Printed  Matter  Distributed 6, 

Number  of  Personal  Letters  Written  in  Reply  to 
Inquiries  


43 

510 

35,602 

38 

450 

2 

18 

36 

4,640 

22,405 

25,346 

500,000 

23,350 


FINANCIAL  REPORT 


44 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 


Total  Receipts $39336.75 

Total  Expenditures.-- 38945.60 

Balance ...$  391.15 


The  following  bulletins  are  available  for  distribution.  They  may  be 
had  without  cost  by  addressing 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 
Pullman,  Wash. 


General  Bulletins* 

74. — Two  Insect  Pests  of  the 
Elm. 

78.  — The  Goat  Industry  in 
Western  Washington. 

79.  — Steer  Feeding  Under  East- 
ern Washington  Conditions. 

91. — Wheat  and  Flour  Investi- 
gations— Crop  of  1906-1907. 

100. — Wheat  and  Flour  Investi- 
gations. I — The  Crops  of  1908- 
1909.  II — The  Composition  and 
Milling  Quality  of  Washington 
Wheats.  Ill — A Simple  Appa- 
ratus for  Determining  the  Mill- 
ing Qualities  of  Wheats. 

102. — Wheat  and  Flour  Investi- 
gations. IV. 

106.  — The  Penetration  System 
of  Spraying. 

107.  — Plant  Diseases  Induced 
by  Sclerotinia  Perplexa. 

108.  — Bluestem  of  the  Black 
Raspberry. 

109.  — Twenty-second  Annual 
Report. 

110.  — Commercial  Fertilizers. 

111.  — The  Chemical  Composi- 
tion of  Wheat. 

112.  — A Preliminary  Report  on 
Investigations  of  Red  Water 
(Hematuria)  of  Cattle  in  Wash- 
ington. 

113.  — Plants  used  for  Food  by 
Sheep  on  the  Mica  Mountain 
Summer  Range. 

114.  — A Report  of  the  Results 
of  the  Continued  Injections  of 
Tuberculine  Upon  Tubercular 
Cattle. 

115.  — Studies  on  the  Relation 
of  Certain  Species  of  Fusarium 
to  the  Tomato  iSlight  of  the  Pa- 
cific Northwest. 

116.  — The  Quantitative  Deter- 
minations of  Mono,  Di  and  Tri 
Calcium  Phosphates  and  Their 
Application. 

117.  — Report  on  Fires  Occur- 
ring in  Threshing  Separators  in 
Eastern  Washington  During  the 
Summer  of  1914. 

118.  — Twenty -fourth  Annual 
Report. 

Popular  Bulletins 

1. — Announcements. 

14. — Planting  an  Apple  Orch- 
ard. 

19. — The  Use  of  Fertilizer 
Lime. 

23. — Trees  in  Washington. 

26. — Currants  for  the  Home 
Garden  or  Commercial  Planta- 
tion. 

29. — Milling  v^uality  of  Wash- 
ington Wheats.  II. 

31. — Clover  in  the  Palouse 
Country. 

35. — Killing  Ground  Squirrels. 


36.  — Field  Peas  on  a Palouse 
Wheat  Farm. 

37.  — Commercial  Fertilizers. 

39. — The  Milling  Quality  of 
Washington  Wheats.  III. 

42. — Alfalfa  Seed  Production. 

44.  — Some  Soil  Fertility  Prob- 
lems. 

45.  — The  Control  of  the  Cod- 
ling Moth. 

46.  — Silos  and  Silage. 

47.  — How  to  Make  Bread  from 
Soft  Wheat  Flours. 

49. — Experiments  in  Fertiliz- 
ing Alfalfa. 

51. — Commercial  Arsenates  of 
Lead  and  Lime  Sulphur. 

53.  — Cause  of  Variation  in  Per 
Cent  of  Fat  of  Market  Cream 
from  Farm  Separators. 

54.  — Preserving  Eggs. 

55.  — Cleanliness  and  Cold  as 
Applied  to  the  Dairy. 

56.  — Fire  Blight  of  Pear  and 
Apple. 

57.  — Prune  Growing  in  Wash- 
ington. 

58.  — Sheep  for  Washington 
Farms. 

60.  — Corn  Growing  in  Wash- 
ington. 

61.  — The  Peach  Twig-Borer. 

62.  — Potato  Growing. 

63.  — Swine. 

64.  — tVinter  Sprays. 

65.  — “Fire  Blight.” 

66.  — Onion  Culture. 

67.  — Top  Grafting  of  Fruit 
Trees. 

68.  — Report  on  Chemical  Com- 
position of  Wheat. 

69.  — Dry  Farming  in  Washing- 
ton. 

70.  — The  Alfalfa  Weevil. 

71.  — Preparation  of  Fruit  Ex- 
hibits. 

72.  — Handling  Apples  for  Stor- 
ige. 

73.  — Stinking  Smut  of  Wheat. 

74.  — Lice  and  Mites. 

75.  — The  Babcock  Test  and  Its 
A-pplication. 

76.  — Winter  Egg  Production. 

77.  — Spray  Calendar  for  1915. 

78.  — The  San  Jose  Scale  In- 
sect. 

Special  Series 

8. — The  Cost  of  Clearing  Land. 

Extension  Series. 

1.  — Alfalfa  Without  Irrigation 
in  Washington. 

2.  — How  to  Measure  Water. 

3.  — Principles  and  Practice  of 
Poultry  Feeding. 

4.  — Forest  Windbreaks  as  a 
Protection  to  the  Light  Soils  of 
the  Columbia  River  Basin. 

5.  — Sewage  Disposal  for  Coun- 
try Homes. 


Extension  bulletins  are  not  mailed  out  to  the  regular  mailing  list 
addresses  of  the  Experiment  Station  at  the  time  of  publication,  but 
they  will  be  sent  to  anyone  making  request  for  same. 

Requests  for  these  extension  bulletins  should  be  addressed  to  the 
Extension  Department  of  the  State  College. 

♦The  “General”  bulletins  are  for  the  most  part  of  a technical 
character. 


V 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIRECTOR’S  OFFICE 


FirsSl  Annual  Report 

Department  of  Dry  Land  Demonstration 
and  Experiment 

For  the  Year  Ending 
December  31,  1914 


BULLETIN  NO.  119 
January,  1915 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  REGENTS  OF  COLLEGE 


James  C.  Cunningham,  President Spokane 

R.  C.  McCroskey,  Vice  President Garfield 

E.  A.  Bryan,  (President  of  the  College),  Secretary  Ex-Officio Pullman 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

W.  A.  Ritz Walla  Walla 

E.  T.  Coman Spokane 

DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT  STAFF 

Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D.  Director 

M.  A.  McCall,  M.  S Vice-Director 

Grover  Burford Demonstrator 

Peter  Jacquot 1 Demonstrator 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL 


Pullman  Washington,  Jan.  30,  1915. 
President  E.  A.  Bryan. 

State  College  of  Washington, 

Pullman,  Washington. 

Sir: 

I have  the  honor  to  submit  herewith  the  report  of  the 
Department  of  Dry  Land  Demonstration  and  Experiment 
from  the  organization  of  the  Department,  March  1,  1914, 
to  December  31,  1914. 

Very  respectfully  submitted, 

IRA  D.  CARDIFF, 

Director. 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT,  DEPARTMENT  OF  DRY 
LAND  DEMONSTRATION  AND  EXPERIMENT, 
STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 


The  Departuient  of  Dr>  Land  Demonstration  and  Ex- 
periment was  organized  l)y  the  Board  of  Regents  of  the 
State  College  in  1914.  The  establishment  of  this  Depart- 
ment for  agricultural  investigation  and  extension  was  in 
response  to  a constantly  increasing  necessity  for  work  in 
connection  with  the  agricultui*e  of  the  semi-arid  portions  of 
the  state.  One  of  the  four  great  agricnltural  districts  of  the 
State  of  AVashington  is  what  is  commonly  known  as  the 
‘‘Dry  Belt,”  a great  area  extending  from  the  eastern  slope 
of  the  Cascades  on  the  west  to  near  the  118th  meridian  on 
the  east  and  from  the  Canadian  to  Oregon  border.  It  in- 
cludes portions  of  the  comities  of  Okanogan,  Stevens,  Ferry, 
Douglas,  Lincoln,  Adams,  Grant,  Kittitas,  Yakima,  Benton, 
Frankiin,  Klickitat,  Walla  Walla,  and  Chelan.  The  district 
in  question  is  entirely  within  the  basin  of  the  upper  Co- 
lumbia river  and  with  the  exception  of  those  districts  which 
have  been  brought  under  irrigation  it  must  for  the  most 
part  be  farmed  according  to  what  is  known  as  “dry  land 
methods”  of  agriculture.  It  is  a region  peculiarly  adapted 
to  the  production  of  cereals  and  live  stock  and  is  a dis- 
trict of  tremendous  potential  possibilities  in  these  lines. 
Ritzville,  a village  located  Avithin  this  district,  at  one  time 
shipped  larger  quantities  of  Avheat  than  any  other  shipping 
point  in  the  world.  The  importance  of  this  district  from 
the  standpoint  of  food  production  and  the  general  economic 
development  of  the  commoiiAvealth  makes  it  necessary  that 
especial  attention  be  given  to  the  perfection  of  agricultural 
methods  for  the  region. 

While  methods  of  dry  farming  are  relatively  new,  great 
advances  have  been  made  in  this  type  of  agriculture  Avithin 
the  last  quarter  of  a century.  HoAvevei’,  most  of  the  prac- 
tices and  principles  in  these  lines  have  been  Avorked  out  in 
that  type  of  dry  land  agriculture  existing  east  of  the 
Rockies;  that  is,  in  the  Great  Plains  states.  Dry  land  agri- 


4 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


culture  in  the  district  east  of  the  Rocky  mountains,  how- 
evei',  presents  decidedly  different  problems  from  that  ex- 
isting in  the  basin  of  the  upper  Columl)ia.  In  the  last  men- 
tioned region  the  rainfall  occurs  mostly  in  the  non-growing 
season;  that  is,  in  the  late  fall,  winter  and  early  spring; 
while  east  of  the  Rocky  mountains  the  rainfall  occurs  pri- 
marily during  the  growing  season  of  the  crops.  This  fact 
alone  is  sufficient  to  render  the  problems  radically  different 
in  the  two  districts.  However,  there  are  other  differences. 
The  climate  is  warmer  in  the  upj^er  Columbia  basin  and  the 
soil  is,  for  the  most  part,  of  a lighter  and  more  sandy  char- 
acter. These  facts,  together  with  the  fact  that  a great 
deal  of  the  farm  land  of  the  Washington  dry  belt  has  thus 
far  been  exploited  rather  than  farmed,  give  us  in  the  State 
of  Washington  an  agricultural  problem  at  once  unique  and 
difficult,  one  which  will  call  for  the  best  of  ability  and  work 
for  its  solution.  However,  its  solution  is  by  no  means  a 
hopeless  task.  Given  the  necessary  financial  support  and  a 
little  time  and  radical  changes  for  the  better  will  take  place 
in  this  important  agricultural  district. 

^^H^'or  many  years  in  a limited  way  important  investi- 
gations in  the  principles  underlying  dry  farming  have  been 
conducted  by  the  State  College.  It  can  justly  claim  a large 
share  in  the  progress  in  this  type  of  farming  in  the  state 
and  in  the  nation.  But  limitation  of  funds  made  it  impos- 
sible to  do  as  much  or  in  as  extensive  a way  as  the  im- 
portance of  the  subject  deserved.  The  attention  of  the  Leg- 
islature was  called  repeatedly  to  this  matter  and  small  sums 
were  from  time  to  time  given  for  this  purpose.  The  state 
is  deeply  interested  both  directly  and  indirectly  in  the  solu- 
tion of  these  problems  for  not  only  would  progress  mean 
increase  in  the  taxable  property  and  wealth  of  the  state 
but  the  state  is  the  direct  owner  of  something  like  half  a 
million  acres  of  land  lying  in  the  arid  and  semi-arid  belt. 

‘‘A  series  of  someAvhat  disastrous  years  in  the  belt  on 
the  verge  of  cultivation  and  great  increase  in  the  prevalence 
of  certain  noxious  weeds  and  the  blowing  of  the  soil  brought 
matters  to  a focus  in  1913.  To  such  an  extent  had  the  dif- 
ficulties increased  that  some  persons  left  their  lands  and 
gave  up  the  struggle.  In  other  cases,  careful  men  produced 
fair  crops  and  gave  the  hope  that  prudent  farming  might 
overcome  the  difficult}".  In  this  situation,  a group  of  gen- 
tlemen living  in  Eastern  Washington  and  deeply  interested 


'Quoted  from  Biennial  Report  of  the  President,  State  College  of  Washington,  11)14. 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


5 


in  the  problems  involved  met  with  the  Board  of  Regents” 
for  the  purpose  of  urging  that  greater  attention  be  given 
to  the  agricultural  and  economical  problems  of  the  district. 
These  gentlemen  expressed  their  Avarin  appreciation  of  the 
excellent  Avork  of  the  college  in  agricidture  and  other  lines 
and  especially  commnded  it  for  its  spirit  of  friendship  and 
co-operation  in  their  efforts  to  solve  the  agricultural  prob- 
lems of  the  state. 

The  college  Avas  urged  to  attack  the  problems  of  the 
“volcanic  ash”  belt  of  Central  AVashington  Avith  increased 
vigor  and  ascertain  Avhat  could  be  done  in  the  Avay  of  in- 
troduction of  drought  resistant  crops,  improved  methods  of 
tillage,  etc.  It  Avas  pointed  out  by  these  gentlemen  that 
as  far  back  as  1899  these  dry  counties  produced  as  high  as 
15,000,000  bushels  of  AAdieat  annually,  as  against  5,000,000 
bushels  produced  in  the  so-called  Avet  or  normal  counties  in 
the  extreme  eastern  portion  of  the  state.  In  1909  the  dry 
counties  produced  52,000,000  1)ushels,  Avhile  the  normal  coun- 
tiesof  Eastern  AYashington  produced  8,000,000.  In  1913  the 
production  of  Avheat  in  the  dry  counties  had  dropped  to  27,- 
000,000  bushels.  These  facts  alone,  it  Avas  urged,  pointed 
to  the  great  importance  of  this  district  economically  and 
also  to  the  necessity  of  agricultural  investigation.  These 
gentlemen  pointed  to  the  fact  that  farmers  had  settled  in 
this  district,  raised  large  crops  Avith  little  effort  on  the 
virgin  soil,  became  OAmr-confident,  increased  their  holdings 
and  exploited  the  soil  until  it  became  deficient  in  humus 
and  infected  Avith  Aveeds.  thus  resulting  in  agricultural  dis- 
aster. due  primarily  to  bloAving  and  Aveeds. 

It  Avas  pointed  ont  by  this  committee  that  the  remedy 
for  this  condition  Avas  not  to  be  expected  in  a day,  that 
time  Avas  necessary  to  bring  about  a uoav  system  of  agri- 
culture AAdiich  Avould  include  diversihcation  and  live  stock. 
After  an  explanation  on  the  part  of  the  College  and  Experi- 
ment Station  officials  as  to  Avhat  aavos  l)eing  done  and  Avhat 
Avas  planned  for  the  agricultural  development  of  this  dis- 
trict primarily,  thru  the  agency  of  the  Experiment  Station 
and  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development,  the  Board  of  Regents 
agreed  that  a neAv  department  of  the  college  should  be 
organized  for  handling  this  problem.  The  Board  proposed 
that  this  department  be  organized  Avith  the  Director  of  the 
Experiment  Station  as  its  head  in  order  to  closely  cor- 
relate the  Avork  of  the  department  Avith  that  of  the  Experi- 
ment Station  and  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  and  it 
Avas  further  planned  that  one  or  more  experts  Avho  were 


6 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


especially  trained  and  who  had  especial  experience  in  the 
handling  of  dry  land  problems  should  be  employed.  It  Avas 
further  agreed  that  especial  efforts  should  be  put  forth  by 
the  Bureau  of  Barm  Development  in  this  work  and  also 
every  assistance  possible  be  given  to  the  private  demonstra- 
tion farm  operated  by  the  above  mentioned  gentlemen  at 
Cunningham,  Washington. 

Further  work  in  connection  Avith  tree  planting,  intro- 
duction of  live  stock,  XAublication  of  dry  land  bulletins,  etc., 
Avere  agreed  upon  for  the  current  year,  all  of  Avhich  were 
to  be  considei’ed  as  temporary  arrangements  for  the  pur- 
pose of  handling  these  problems  until  the  Legislature  could 
convene  and  provide  adequate  financial  support  for  the 
e(iuipnient  of  the  branch  Experiment  Station  in  the  dry  belt. 

On  March  1st,  Mr.  H.  E.  GoldsAvorthy  Avas  appointed 
Vice  Director  of  the  Department  to  have  immediate  charge 
of  the  field  Avork.  Mr.  OoldsAvorthy  Avas  raised'  on  the  edge 
of  the  dry  belt,  had  been  technically  trained  in  the  State 
College  of  AVashington  and  had  had  several  years’  success- 
ful experience  in  dry  land  farming  on  a large  scale  in 
Alberta.  The  problems,  therefore,  Avere  not  new  to  him. 
HoAvever,  owing  to  circumstances  unforseen  at  the  time  of 
his  employment,  Mr.  ColdsAvorthy  unfortunately  found  it 
necessary  to  suddenly  resign  from  his  position  in  June.  Mr. 
ColdsAvorthy ’s  head(iuarters  Avere  temporarily  established  at 
Lind.  He  Avas  provided  Avith  an  automobile  and  started 
the  Avork  at  once.  Manifest!}'  one  of  his  first  problems  Avas 
to  acciuaint  himself  Avith  the  farming  conditions  and  needs 
of  the  dry  territory.  Therefore,  a good  deal  of  time  the 
first  feAv  months  Avas  devoted  to  this  line  of  work;  at  the 
same  time  a great  deal  of  assistance  Avas  given  farmers  in 
various  localities  by  means  of  individual  advice  and  sug- 
gestion. 

SURVEY  BY  COUNTIES 

A sui'Amy  Avas  made  of  that  portion  of  the  dry  belt 
lying  chiefly  in  Adams,  Franklin,  Grant,  Douglas,  Benton, 
and  Walla  AValla  counties. 

Adams  County. — Adams  county  possesses  a marked  va- 
riety of  conditions.  Land  north  and  Avest  of  Ritzvillc  and 
from  llitzville  east  and  south  in  the  direction  of,  and  in- 
cluding. Ralston  and  Washtuena  and  also  what  is  knoAvn 
as  Michigan  Prairie  and  Rattle  Snake  Flats,  comprises  the 
better  part  of  the  county.  This  land  is  light  and  to  some 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


7 


extent  subject  to  blow.  However,  not  to  the  extent  that 
obtains  in  the  remainder  of  the  county. 

It  was  found  that  fall  tillage  is  quite  generally  prac- 
ticed throughout  this  district,  resulting  in  the  conservation 
of  winter  moisture  and  also  the  destruction  of  the  Russian 
thistle.  In  the  spring  the  land  is  usually  plowed  and  har- 
rowed early,  most  of  the  plowing  being  done  in  April. 

In  the  southwest  portion  of  the  county  the  rainfall  is 
less  and  the  soil  much  lighter  than  in  the  above  mentioned 
district.  The  soil  blowing  problem  is  greatly  intensified. 
In  fact,  it  is  the  chief  agricultural  problem  of  this  district. 
Many  devices  are  used  to  prevent  the  blow.  It  was  found 
that  fall  tillage  is  not  practiced  to  the  extent  that  it  should 
be.  Early  spring  plowing  or  disking  is  found  to  give  much 
better  results  than  the  later  plowing.  Of  course,  through- 
out this  entire  district  summer  fallow  on  alternate  years  is 
the  necessary  custom.  It  was  found  that  many  of  the 
farmers  plow  with  the  mole  boards  off,  thus  leaving  the 
trash  on  top  of  the  land  and  in  this  manner  preventing 
the  blow. 

With  reference  to  seeding,  it  was  found  that  the  best 
results  are  obtained  by  waiting  until  a few  days  after  the 
rains  come  in  the  fall,  then  cultivating  to  kill  the  young 
weeds  and  seeding  immediately  following. 

Franklin  County.  — Northern  Franklin  county  corre- 
sponds to  southern  Adams,  being  better  in  the  eastern  than 
in  the  western  portion.  The  rainfall  gradually  decreases 
farther  south  till  from  Eltopia  southward  little  farming  is 
done  except  under  irrigation.  In  the  northern  portion  of 
the  count}"  the  farming  operations  and  soil  conditions  are 
much  the  same  as  described  for  southeastern  Adams  county. 
Throughout  this  district  there  seems  to  be  a growing  senti- 
ment in  favor  of  the  production  of  live  stock  and  the  grow- 
ing of  winter  rye  for  forage.  A good  many  of  the  farmers 
are  going  into  the  hog  business  and  a number  are  raising 
hogs. 

Grant  County. — The  section  of  Grant  county  that  lies 
east  of  Moses  Lake  from  Warden  north  to  Wheeler  and 
thru  toward  the  line  of  the  Great  Northern  railway  is  the 
section  in  which  agricultural  conditions  seem  to  be  fairly 
good.  The  district  is  inhabited  largely  by  German  Russians. 
The  farms  are  well  tilled , the  weeds  kept  down  and  the 
people  are  industrious,  tho  many  of  them  are  handicapped 
from  lack  of  ability  to  use  the  English  language.  They 
are  good  farmers  and  are  getting  good  results. 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


In  northern  Grant  county  the  soil  is  heavier  and  less 
subject  to  blow.  The  rainfall  is  somewhat  greater  and  the 
agricultural  conditions  are  promising  tho  the  country  is 
broken  considerably  by  scab  land. 

Douglas  County. — A considerable  portion  of  Douglas 
county  has  a heavy  black  soil  with  a rainfall  of  12  or  13 
inches.  The  dry  land  problems  of  this  county  are  less 
severe  than  those  farther  to  the  south;  that  is,  Grant,  western 
Adams  and  Franklin  counties.  The  blowing  of  the  soil  is 
not  a serious  problem  unless  the  land  is  farmed  in  a care- 
less manner.  It  is  found  that  some  of  the  most  successful 
farmers  in  this  region  plow  fairly  early,  about  six  or  seven 
inches  deep,  following  the  plow  with  a packer.  Weeding 
is  frequently  done  with  a spring  tooth  harrow.  Those 
farmers  who  put  a large  amount  of  work  upon  their  land 
and  do  not  try  to  farm  too  large  areas  seem  to  be  getting 
the  best  results  and  larger  prolits.  Such  crops  as  alfalfa, 
peas,  corn,  etc.,  do  reasonably  well  in  this  district. 

0]ie  of  the  chief  problems  of  the  county  is  that  of 
transportation.  Farmers  are  obliged  to  haul  their  grain 
long  distances  to  market.  It  is  the  opinion  that  the  intro- 
duction of  live  stock  and  the  feeding  of  a large  portion  of 
the  products  of  the  farm  Avill  solve  this  problem. 

Benton  County. — This  countj^  contains  tAvo  dry  land  dis- 
tricts— the  Horse  Heaven  country  to  the  south  of  the  Yakima 
river  and  the  Rattle  Snake  Hills  to  the  north.  In  the  dry 
land  region  of  this  county  the  population  is  sparse,  aver- 
aging perhaps  half  a dozen  families  to  the  township.  Care- 
less methods  of  farming  on  the  part  of  some  farmers  have 
resulted  in  great  inroads  being  made  by  the  Russian  thistle 
and  the  tumbling  mustard.  There  is  a great  deal  of  vacant 
land  and  the  blow  prol)]em  is  serious. 

Those  farmers  Avho  are  raising  some  hogs  and  other  live 
stock  are  the  more  successful.  Tillage,  whether  disking  or 
ploAving,  is  done  to  a depth  of  only  a feAv  inches.  That 
there  are  agricultural  possibilities  in  these  districts  is  evi- 
dent from  the  fact  that  some  farmers  haAm  lived  here  for 
long  periods  of  years  and  haAm  made  a success  of  it.  One 
of  the  great  handicaps  of  this  district  is  the  depth  to  Avhich 
one  must  drill  for  Avater.  It  becomes  necessary  to  haul 
Avater,  in  many  cases,  considerable  distances. 

Walla  Walla  County. — The  dry  land  sections  of  Walla 
Walla  county  lie  in  its  northern  part.  Around  Atkins  and 
west  to  the  river,  also  along  the  river  to  the  north,  the 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


9 


soil  is  very  light  sand  and  subject  to  blow.  Around  Eureka 
and  from  here  north  and  east  the  soil  is  heavier  and  good 
crops  are  raised.  The  blow  problem  is  not  serious,  nor  is 
the  weed  problem.  It  is  possible  to  handle  the  weeds,  for 
the  most  part,  Avith  the  harrow.  Alfalfa  and  peas  do  Avell 
in  this  district.  Conditions  here  could  probably  be  greatly 
improved  by  more  fall  tillage. 

Owing  to  the  limited  time  it  was  not  possible  to  com- 
plete an  adequate  survey  of  the  entire  dry  district.  No 
work  being  done  in  Ferry,  Okaiiogan,  Kittitas,  Yakima,  Lin- 
coln or  Klickitat  counties.  It  is  belieA'Cd  that  the  one  factor 
that  will  contribute  most  to  the  agricultural  improvement 
of  this  district  is  the  more  extensive  production  of  live 
stock.  The  farm  of  medium  size  which  has  a bunch  of  hogs, 
a few  dairy  cows,  Avork  stock — Avhich  is  mares  raising  colts — 
a good  poultry  yard,  etc.,  is  the  farm  that  pays.  The  quite 
general  idea  that  the  lack  of  forage  crops  make  live  stock 
raising  impossible  is  an  erroneous  one. 

In  the  drier  portions  of  the  district  where  alfalfa,  corn 
or  peas  are  not  possible,  Avinter  rye  can  be  grown  for  forage. 
SAA^eet  clover  also  probably  has  great  possibilities,  tho  its 
groAvth  is  someAAdiat  in  the  experimental  stage,  as  is  also 
the  case  of  Sudan  grass.  In  many  portions  of  this  region 
the  pit  silo  can  be  used  to  good  advantage,  Avith  Avheat  or 
rye  as  silage.  In  the  better  portions  of  the  dry  belt,  as 
mentioned  above,  alfalfa,  peas,  corn,  sorghums,  etc.,  aauII 
make  live  stock  production  a profitable  industry. 

CO-OPERATIVE  WORK 

A good  deal  of  the  Avork  of  the  department  during  the 
forepart  of  the  year  AA^as  carried  on  in  co-operation  with 
the  county  agriculturist.  Arrangements  Avere  made  for  car- 
rying on  co-operative  Avork  Avith  a number  of  farmers,  AA^hich 
Avork  is  being  continued.  Especial  attention  aauis  given  to 
placing  farmers  in  touch  with  sources  of  information  for 
agricultural  assistance.  Some  tAAmnty  farmers’  meetings  of 
various  kinds  AA^ere  held  for  the  purpose  of  encouraging 
better  farming  and  making  a closer  study  of  the  agricul- 
tural problems  of  the  district.  The  fact  that  the  work  was 
started  during  the  ‘Svork  season”  prevented  more  activity 
along  this  line. 

Early  in  the  summer  arrangements  Avere  made  thru 
public  spirited  citizens  of  WaterAulle  for  the  use  of  an  80- 
acre  tract  of  land  near  this  toAvn  for  experiments  in  dry 
land  agriculture,  especially  in  the  testing  of  cereal  and 


10 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


forage  crops.  Grover  S.  Burford  was  placed  in  charge  of 
this  work,  a portion  of  the  land  was  gotten  into  condi- 
tion for  experimental  work  and  a number  of  fall  crops 
planted.  It  is  planned  during  the  coming  spring  to  gi’eatly 
enlarge  the  work  at  this  point,  especially  the  work  on  forage 
crops  and,  if  possible,  secure  the  co-operation  of  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture  in  connection  with  the 
work  here. 

Early  in  the  spring  a considerable  amount  of  co-oper- 
ative work  was  started  in  tree  planting  throughout  the  dry 
belt.  The  department  had  in  mind  two  purposes  in  this 
work ; one,  the  use  of  trees  to  prevent  the  blowing  of  the 
soil  in  the  dry  district;  the  other,  improvement  in  the  gen- 
eral comfort  and  appearance  of  the  farm  home.  Approx- 
imately 40,000  trees  were  thus  distributed.  These  consisted 
chiefly  of  honey  locust,  black  locust,  and  Kussian  olive  to- 
gether with  a limited  number  of  fruit  trees. 

Following  the  resignation  of  Mr.  Goldsworthy,  M.  A. 
McCall  was  appointed  to  the  vacancy  in  the  Vice  Director’s 
office,  taking  up  the  work  October  1st.  Peter  Jacquot  was 
also  added  to  the  staff  as  Assistant  Demonstrator  for  the 
Benton  county  district.  Demonstrations  and  general  assist- 
ance were  carried  on  in  Benton  county.  A general  survey 
was  made  of  the  field  and  plans  were  effected  for  prose" 
cuting  the  work  actively  during  the  coming  season.  During 
the  fall  months  practically  every  farmer  in  Horse  Heaven 
was  visited  and  induced  to  take  up  some  line  of  co-operative 
tillage  work.  A portion  of  these  men  more  fortunately  situ- 
ated as  regards  conditions  of  their  farms,  are  undertaking 
cropping  trials  with  forage  crops.  The  result  of  the  fall’s 
work  in  the  Horse  Heaven  district  has  been  quite  satisfac- 
tory. To  quote  a local  capitalist:  ‘‘More  and  better  fall 
work  for  summer  fallow  has  been  done  in  the  Horse  Heaven 
this  past  season  than  ever  before.”  This  is  directly  attribut- 
able to  the  efforts  of  the  Department.  Two  meetings  were 
also  held  in  the  Horse  Heaven,  each  having  an  attendance 
of  twenty-five,  a very  good  attendance  considering  the  thinly 
settled  character  of  the  country. 

At  various  places  throughout  the  Dry  Belt  pure  blooded 
live  stock  was  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  farmers  by  the 
Department.  A Duroc  boar  and  two  sows,  and  also  a “dual 

purpose”  Shorthorn  bull  were  placed  with  W.  W.  Haile 
on  the  private  demonstration  farm  at  Ounningham.  and  a 
Tam  worth  boar  and  sow  were  placed  with  Peter  Timm,  and 
a Duroc  boar  with  Kelso  Brothers  in  Horse  Heaven.  The 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


11 


services  of  these  animals  are  free  to  any  farmer  and  have 
been  made  use  of  to  a certain  extent.  All  boar  progeny 
from  sows  so  placed  are  to  be  further  distributed. 

PLANS  FOR  FUTURE  WORK 

Because  of  the  ver^^  general  and  indefinite  nature  of 
the  Avork  to  date  a detailed  report  is  almost  out  of  the  (ques- 
tion for  the  past  year’s  operations.  However,  the  follow- 
ing brief  outline  will  indicate  the  plans  of  the  Department 
for  the  coming  season  : 

Co-operative  Trials  and  Demonstrations: 

A.  Tillage — 

1.  Fall  disking  compared  Avith  leaving  the  land  in 
stubble  over  Avinter. 

2.  Fall  ploAAung  compared  Avith  spring  ploAving. 

3.  Early  spring  disking  before  plowing  as  compared 
Avith  undisked  land  late  ploAved. 

4.  Early  spring  vs.  late  ploAving. 

5.  Clean  tillage  of  summer  fallow  vs.  Aveeds. 

6.  Fall  listing  a^s.  ploAving  for  light  soils  tending  to 
drift. 

7.  Deep  ploAving  vs.  shalloAv  nloAving. 

8.  Special  tillage  methods  for  controlling  soil  drifting. 

9.  The  use  of  press  Avheel  drills  in  seeding  vs.  drills 
Avithout  press  Avheels. 

10.  Spring  cultiAmtion  of  fall  seeded  crops  Avith  trials 
of  the  Hallock  Aveeder  for  this  purpose  as  com- 
pared Avith  the  harroAv. 

11.  Introduction  and  trial  of  any  ncAv  and  promising 
tillage  implement. 

12.  Moisture  observations  to  demonsti’ate  the  relative* 
efficiency  of  various  methods. 

B.  Cropping— 

1.  Alfalfa: 

(a)  Trials  of  the  Baltic  Amriety  seeded  in  roAvs 
thirty-five  inches  apart  for  forage  purposes. 

(b)  Trials  of  the  Baltic  vaidety  seeded  in  roAvs 
for  seed.  ComparatiAm  trials  of  plants  at 
various  distances  apart  in  the  rows  for  seed 
production. 


12 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


2.  Sweet  Clover : 

(a)  Seeded  in  rows  for  forage. 

(b)  As  above  for  alfalfa  for  seed. 

8.  Field  Peas  (Rainfall  10  Lnclies  or  More)  : 

(a)  Seeded  in  double  rows  thirty-five  inches  apart 
for  seed  production. 

(b)  Seeded  in  double  rows  thirty-five  inches  apart 
to  be  hogged  or  sheeped  off. 

4.  Sudan  Grass : 

(a)  Seeded  in  rows  to  be  tested  both  for  forage 
and  seed  purposes,  especially  where  too  dry 
to  produce  alfalfa  or  sweet  clover  to  ad- 
vantage. 

5.  Feterita : 

(a)  Where  temperatures  are  high  enough  to  war- 
rant and  especially  on  sandy  soils  at  lower 
elevations  to  be  tried  for  forage  and  seed 
purposes. 

6.  Proso : 

(a)  A drought  resistant  millet  to  be  tried  for 
seed  and  forage. 

7..  Winter  Vetch  and  Rye: 

(a)  To  be  tried  for  forage  and  seed  purposes  on 
sandy  soils  with  a tendency  to  drift,  espe- 
cially. 

8.  Rye : 

(a)  Encouraging  the  growing  of  rye  under  more 
extreme  conditions  and  introducing  and  tiy- 
ing  improved  strains  and  varieties. 

9.  Rape : 

(a)  Under  more  favorable  conditions  to  be  tried 
as  a source  of  continuous  summer  succulent 
forage  for  hogs  and  sheep. 

10.  Corn : 

(a)  Tests  of  Experiment  Station  varieties,  Thay- 
er’s Dent  and  Windus’  White  Dent,  as  com- 
pared with  locals. 

(b)  Tests  for  hogging  off  corn. 

(c)  Corn  for  silage. 

11.  Wheat: 

(a)  Where  advisable  trials  of  new  and  improved 
varieties  against  the  ones  commonly  grown. 
Tnti'oduction  of  such  where  deemed  advisable. 

(b)  Lighter  seeding,  30  lb.  to  45  lb.  per  acre, 
as  compared  with  customary  seeding  at  one 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


13 


bushel  or  more. 

(c)  Trials  of  tlu^  effect  of  careful  seed  grading 
and  treatment. 

12.  Barley : 

(a)  As  a grain  crop  under  more  favorable  rain- 
fall. 

(b)  Hogging  down  of  the  crop. 

13.  Enimer : 

(a)  Both  winter  and  spring  varieties  for  feed 
crops  under  more  extreme  conditions. 
Preliminary  to  the  co-opei‘ative  work  in  various  crop- 
ping trials  orders  have  been  .placed  for  considerable  quan- 
tities of  the  less  common  of  these  seeds,  Baltic  alfalfa,  sweet 
clover,  Sudan  grass,  Proso,  Feterita,  vetch,  and  field  peas. 
Where  possible  the  co-operator  is  expected  to  pay  for  seed 
used  unless  the  trial  is  decidedly  in  the  nature  of  an  ex- 
periment. 

C.  Miscellaneous — 

1.  Distribution  and  a supervision  of  tree  plantings 
foi*  Avindbreak  trials  (17,000  trees  have  been  se- 
cured thru  the  Forestry  Department  of  theOollege) 

2.  Placing  of  pure  bred  live  stock  for  the  service  of 
dry  belt  farmers. 

3.  Encouraging  the  use  of  all  straAv  and  manure  pro- 
duced on  the  farm.  Trials  to  demonstrate  proper 
methods  for  using  and  handling  same  for  profit 
and  to  prevent  soil  blowing.  Trials  of  the  straw 
spreader. 

4.  Co-operative  poultry  work. 

5.  General  improA^ement  of  farm  conditions  from  the 
social  and  living  standpoint. 

6.  Consideration  of  problems  of  farm  management 
under  dry  belt  conditions. 

7.  Silos  and  silage  possibilities  for  the  dry  belt. 

8.  Soil  examination  and  sampling.  Collection  of 
representative  soils,  grasses  and  Aveeds. 

9.  Kain  gauges  are  being  placed  at  various  points  in 
the  dry  belt  and  attention  will  be  given  to  the 
collection  of  complete  and  adequate  data  in  regard 
to  rainfall  for  the  entire  dry  district. 

This  briefiy  outlines  the  phases  of  co-operative  work  to 
be  undertaken  during  the  succeeding  season.  As  yet  co- 
operative trials  are,  from  limited  facilities,  the  only  type 
possible,  altho  there  is  much  to  be  desired  in  the  way  of  a 


14 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


more  technical  study  of  dry  belt  problems.  From  the  limited 
survey  already  made  it  would  appear  that  soil  as  well  as 
moisture  conditions  play  a very  important  part  in  deter- 
mining the  severity  of  conditions  to  be  met  and  a soil  survey 
of  the  Central  Washington  area  would  do  much  to  aid  in 
giving  correct  recommendations. 

It  is  desired  that  those  who  are  interested  in  the  agri- 
culture of  the  dry  belt  send  the  names  of  parties  who  may 
prove  suitable  co-operators  to  this  Department.  These  par- 
ties will  be  communicated  with  and  if  advisable  plans  of 
co-operation  arranged  for.  An  agreement  in  writing  will 
be  reciuired  from  each  in  order  that  as  nearly  an  exact  ful- 
fillment of  instructions  as  possible  may  be  secured.  Records 
are  kei^t  of  all  trials  and  all  results  are  in  such  shape  that 
a full  and  complete,  report  is  possible. 

NEEDS  OF  THE  DRY  BELT 

The  needs  of  dry  land  agriculture  in  Washington  are 
great.  They  may  be  grouped  under  four  heads,  as  follows : 
First  Improved  Methods  of  Tillage;  second,  Introduction  of 
Live  Stock;  third.  Improved  Crops,  especially  forage  crops; 
and,  fourth.  Better  Living  Conditions  in  and  About  the 
Farm  Homes. 

Improved  Methods  of  Tillage. — With  reference  to  the 
first  of  these  there  is  needed  a considerable  amount  of  in- 
vestigational work  along  the  line  of  moisture  requirements 
of  plants,  the  handling  of  soil  to  conserve  moisture  and  fer- 
tility, and  prevent  blowing.  Considerable  investigation  has 
been  carried  on  in  this  line,  but  much  remains  to  be  done. 
There  is  also  great  need  of  the  dissemination  among  the 
farmers  of  the  knowledge  already  obtained.  Investigations 
in  this  connection  must  be  carried  on  primarily  in  the  Dry 
Belt. 

Introduction  of  Live  Stock. — The  more  extensive  produc- 
tion of  live  stock  will  undoubtedly  solve  many  of  the  agri- 
cultural problems  of  this  district.  This  problem  is  one  Avhich 
calls  for  propaganda  Avork  rather  than  investigation.  It  can 
best  be  made  by  rendering  assistance  to  farmers  in  obtain- 
ing and  selecting  stock  and  giving  instruction  for  the  caring 
of  the  same  and  production  of  suitable  feed.  The  state  can 
Avell  afford  to  expend  some  money  in  the  introduction  of 
good  stock  for  breeding  purposes  into  this  district.  The  use 
of  this  stock  should  be  carefully  supei*vised  by  members  of 
the  Department  staff,  and  the  stock  placed  Avhere  it  Avill 
do  the  most  good. 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


15 


Improved  Crops. — Perhaps  the  j>reatest  need  in  the  Dry 
Belt  at  the  present  time  is  investigation  to  determine  the 
forage  crops  most  suited  to  the  district.  New  and  prom- 
ising forage  crop  plants  are  constantly  being  introduced  into 
the  country  or  being  produced  by  plant  breeders  within  the 
country.  These  should  be  tested  out  under  the  crop  con- 
ditions of  our  Dry  Belt  and  distributed  among  the  farmers 
first  in  an  experimental  way,  and  later,  if  satisfactory  ex- 
tensively encouraged.  This  work  of  crop  testing  and  breed- 
ing of  agricultural  plants  can  he  carried  on  adequately  only 
by  the  establishment  of  a branch  Experiment  Station  in  the 
Dry  Belt.  This,  then,  becomes  the  greatest  need  of  this 
district.  The  establishment  of  such  a station  will  go  far 
toward  solving  many  of  the  problems  of  the  district. 

Improved  Living  Conditions. — One  of  the  difficulties  con- 
nected with  the  dry  land  agricultui*e  in  Washington  is  the 
lack  of  home  conveniences  and  comforts  on  the  farm.  As 
one  travels  over  this  district  farmhouse  after  farmhouse  is 
passed  wuthout  seeing  a tree  or  shrub  growing  near.  The 
houses  themselves  are  frecpiently  poorly  constructed,  and 
anything  but  homelike.  The  general  planting  of  trees  both 
for  shade  and  fruit  about  the  farm  homes  will  do  much  to 
ameliorate  living  conditions.  Much  also  may  be  done  by 
the  encouragement  of  poultiy  raising,  gardening,  and  work 
along  the  line  of  home  economics ; for  upon  many  of  these 
farms  which  are  more  remotely  situated  from  the  main  lines 
of  travel,  the  life  of  the  wmnien  and  children  must  be  far 
from  attractive.  Their  nearest  neighbors  are  frequently  two 
or  three  miles  distant.  Anything,  therefore,  w'hich  can  be 
done  to  improve  living  conditions  will  tend  to  render  the 
tenancy  of  the  land  more  stable  and  greatly  improve  the 
economic  conditions  of  the  country  as  a whole. 

To  sum  up : the  needs  are  of  twm-fold  character. 

First,  there  is  great  need  of  investigation  in  the  lines 
above  mentioned.  This  can  only  be  done  by  the  establish- 
ment of  a branch  Experiment  Station. 

Second,  the  need  for  dissemination  among  the  farmers 
of  the  knowledge  already  in  possession  of  Experiment  Sta- 
tions. or  to  be  obtained  from  the  new  station.  This  can 
best  be  accomplished  by  field  men,  working  directly  with 
the  farmers  as  demonstrators  and  can  be  most  feasibly  ac- 
complished by  the  employment  of  county  agriculturists. 
Each  county  in  the  Dry  Belt  should  employ  a competent 
agriculturist.  Fortunately,  many  of  the  dry  land  counties 


16 


DRY  LAND  DEPARTMENT 


have  already  done  so,  and  important  results  have  been  ob- 
tained from  the  work  of  these  men. 

In  the  establishment  of  a braneh  Experiment  Station, 
great  care  should  be  exercised  in  locating  the  same.  It 
should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  station  is  to  be  located 
not  for  a few  years,  but  probably  for  centuries,  and  will 
become  a relatively  permanent  state  institution.  It,  there- 
fore, should  be  located  wdiere  it  can  best  aid  in  the  solu- 
tion of  all  the  problems  of  the  Dry  Belt.  Local  influence, 
local  contributions,  etc.,  should  have  relatively  small  part 
in  the  location  of  such  a station. 

FINANCIAL  STATEMENT 

The  following  is  the  financial  statement  for  the  Depart- 
ment up  to  the  end  of  the  calendar  year,  1914  •. 


Salaries  $1,205.51 

Labor  145.70 

Freight  and'  Express  59.96 

Office  Bent,  etc 180.42 

Postage,  Telephone,  and  Telegraph  59.33 

Automobile  632.25 

Furniture  and  Fixtures  145.95 

Books  26.50 

Traveling  Expenses  463.41 

Auto  Repairs  and  Gasoline 317.59 

Live  Stock  235.00 


TOTAL  EXPENDITURES  $3,471.67 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIRECTOR’S  OFFICE 


Fir^t  Annual  Report 

Bureau  of  Farm  Development 

For  the  Year  Ending 
December  31,  1914 


BULLETIN  NO.  120 
January,  1915 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D 

Byron  Hunter,  M.  A 

T.  J.  Newbill 

E.  N.  Miller,  M.  S 

Geo.  A.  Nelson,  B.  S 

Lee  M.  Lampson,  B.  S 

Roy  G.  Adams,  B.  A 

J.  R.  Shinn,  B.  S 

O.  Virgil  Patton,  B.  S 

Albert  M.  Richardson,  B.  S. 

James  A.  Hughes,  B.  S 

Floyd  W.  Rader,  B.  S 

O.  C.  Van  Houten,  B.  S 


Director 

Vice  Director 

State  Leader  of  Boys^  and  Girls’  Club  Work 

^.Farm  Management  Demonstrat  or 

Agriculturist  for  Wahkiakum  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Benton  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Adams  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Spokane  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Walla  Walla  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Douglas  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Okanogan  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  King  Co. 

Agriculturist  for  Thurston  Co. 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL 


Pullman,  Washington,  January  31,  1915. 

✓ 

Honorable  Ernest  Lister,  Governor, 

Olympia,  Washington. 

Sir: 

I beg  leave  to  submit  herewith  the  First  Annual  Report 
of  the  Washington  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  for  the 
calendar  year  1914. 

On  account  of  the  fact  that  the  Bureau  did  not  come  into 
legal  existence  until  the  middle  of  the  year  1913,  the  work 
of  that  year  was  largely  of  a preliminary  character,  and  has 
been  embodied  in  the  report  of  the  year  1914. 

The  report  is  made  in  considerable  detail  because  of  the 
fact  that  the  work  is  relatively  new  in  the  State  and  its  char- 
acter unknown  to  many. 

Very  respectfully  submitted, 

IRA  D.  CARDIFF, 

Director. 


First  Annual  Report  of  the  Washington 
Bureau  of  Farm  Development 


^^The  most  important  piece  of  legislation  passed  by  the 
last  Legislature  was  the  Act  creating  the  Bureau  of  Farm 
Development,”  states  the  Washington  Commission  on  Rural 
Credits  in  making  its  report  to  the  Governor.  Such  a state- 
ment, coming  from  men  of  experience  and  insight  into  agri- 
cultural and  industrial  affairs,  is  significant. 

Strange  to  say,  too  little  is  known  of  this  most  important 
piece  of  legislation.  According  to  said  Act,  this  Bureau 
“shall  consist  of  the  Director  of  the  Experiment  Station  of 
the  State  College  of  Washington,  Avho  shall  be  Director 
thereof,  and  of  the  Boards  of  the  County  Commissioners  of 
all  counties  of  the  State  of  AVashington  desiring  to  partici- 
pate therein.”  It  is  further  provided  in  this  law  that  “The 
Board  of  County  Commissioners  of  any  county  may,  by  re- 
quest in  writing,  apply  to  the  Director  of  the  Bureau  of 
Farm  Development,  who  shall  appoint  and  assign  to  such 
counties  a competent  agricultural  expert.”  And  further, 
“Such  experts  shall  give  individual  instruction  and  conduct 
experimental  work  with  the  object  of  improving  the  agri- 
cultural methods  and  conditions  of  their  counties,  and  shall 
perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  required  subject  to 
the  general  supervision  and  control  of  the  Director  of  the 
Bureau  of  Farm  Development.” 

The  general  purposes  of  the  framers  of  this  Bill  is  to 
place  directly  in  the  hands  of  the  farmer  the  successful 
methods  and  practices  that  have  been  determined  by  the 
Experiment  Stations  of  the  country,  and  in  such  a way 
that  the  farmer  can  readily  understand  and  make  use  of 
these  methods. 

The  County  Agriculturist,  as  this  official  has  been  desig- 
nated, also  observes  local  conditions  and  the  best  farm  prac- 
tices of  his  community  and  as  he  travels  from  place  to  place 
disseminates  this  information  among  all  farmers  of  the  com- 
munity. 

Investigations  of  the  United  States  Department  of  Agri- 
culture during  the  last  six  or  eight  years  have  revealed  the 


6 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


fact  that  not  over  50  per  cent  of  the  farmers  make  any  use 
of  the  scientific  results  and  practices  in  agriculture  which 
have  been  worked  out  by  the  Experiment  Stations,  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and  other  agencies 
interested  in  scientific  investigation.  Heretofore  it  has  been 
the  practice  to  disseminate  this  information  very  largely  by 
means  of  instruction  in  Agricultural  Colleges,  bulletins,  news- 
papers, demonstration  trains.  Farmers’  Institutes,  etc.  While 
many  of  these  agencies  have  been  very  efficient  in  their  re- 
spective lines  of  agricultural  extension  work,  the-  fact  still 
remains  that  half  the  farmers  have  not  come  in  contact 
with  any  of  them. 

These  investigations  conducted  by  the  United  States  De- 
partment of  Agriculture  also  reveal  the  fact  that  the  differ- 
ence between  success  and  failure  on  most  farms  can  more 
often  be  attributed  to  management  or  mismanagement  than 
to  any  other  one  cause ; for  instance,  two  farmers  will  be 
living  neighbors  under  like  conditions  of  soil  and  climate 
with  like  capital  invested  and  like  equipment  upon  their 
farms.  One  will  make  a profit  each  year;  the  other  operate 
his  farm  at  a loss.  The  difference  is  largely  one  of  man- 
agement or  organization  of  the  various  enterprises  of  the 
farm  and  the  facility  with  which  one  makes  use  of  modern 
agricultural  practices. 

As  a result  of  these  findings  by  the  United  States  De- 
partment of  Agriculture,  experiments  were  started  in  various 
parts  of  the  United  States  to  test  the  value  of  a local  ‘‘Farm 
Adviser,”  “Farm  Demonstrator,”  “Itinerant  Teacher,” 
“Agent”  or  “Agriculturist,”  as  he  is  called  in  various  com- 
munities. A careful  study  was  made  by  these  local  men  of 
farms  or  groups  of  farms  in  their  respective  communities 
and  each  and  every  factor  involved  in  the  general  profit- 
ableness of  the  farm  was  carefully  considered.  The  Farm 
Adviser  or  Agriculturist  was  then  in  a position  to  make  sug- 
gestions in  regard  to  improvement.  These  experiments  in 
agricultural  extension  work  were  tried  for  several  years  and 
in  every  case  were  unqualifiedly  successful.  Farms  which 
have  long  been  operating  at  a loss  were  converted  into 
profitable  business-like  concerns.  As  a result,  a popular 
widespread  movement  started  for  the  adoption  of  this  method 
of  the  dissemination  of  agricultural  knowledge. 

The  State  of  Washington  provided  for  this  work  thru 
the  organization  of  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development,  as 
mentioned  above.  The  last  session  of  the  National  Congress 
also  passed  the  Smith-Lever  Bill  providing  federal  assistance 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


7 


for  this  type  of  work,  to  be  conducted  thru  the  co-operation 
of  the  agricultural  colleges  of  the  several  states. 

The  movement  to  employ  an  experienced,  practical  and 
scientifically  trained  agriculturist  for  each  county  had  its 
beginning  in  this  state  in  the  fall  of  1912,  previous  to  the 
organization  of  the  Bureau.  In  November  of  that  year  a 
man  was  employed  for  Wahkiakum  County.  The  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture  and  the  Pamona  Grange 
provided  $1440  and  $760  respectively  toward  his  salary  and 
expenses.  Other  counties  attempted  to  take  up  the  work 
at  that  time  but  found  it  difficult  to  raise  the  funds  by  pri- 
vate subscription. 

In  the  first  two  counties  to  operate  under  this  law  a 
portion  of  the  necessary  funds  for  salary  and  expenses  was 
raised  by  private  subscriptions.  The  balance  of  the  funds 
was  provided  by  the  County  Commissioners  by  taxation. 

In  the  next  five  counties  that  took  up  the  work  the 
entire  amount  necessary  for  salary  and  expenses  was  pro- 
vided by  the  County  Commissioners. 

Inasmuch  as  the  Bureau  did  not  come  into  existence 
until  June  1,  1913,  many  counties  were  not  prepared  to  take 
up  the  work  during  that  year.  On  the  first  of  January, 
1914,  the  State  College  provided  the  necessary  funds  for  the 
employment  of  a Vice  Director,  who  has  immediate  super- 
vision of  the  work  of  the  various  County  Agriculturists. 
The  Bureau  was  fortunate  in  securing  for  this  position  a 
man  who  had  had  training  and  experience  in  this  line  of 
work  with  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture,  and 
one  who  understands  the  agricultural  problems  of  the  state. 

On  July  1,  1914,  funds  from  the  Smith-Lever  Bill  and 
the  annual  appropriation  to  the  United  States  Department 
of  Agriculture  became  available  for  this”  work.  From  these 
two  sources  the  State  College  is  now  putting  approximately 
$75  per  month  into  each  of  the  counties  employing  an  agri- 
culturist. The  County  Commissioners,  by  taxation,  provide 
the  rest  of  the  necessary  funds. 

In  August,  1914,  provision  was  further  made  thru  the 
State  College  and  the  United  States  Department  of  Agri- 
culture for  the  co-operative  employment  of  a Farm  Manage- 
ment Demonstrator  who  gives  his  time  exclusively  to  the 
problems  of  farm  management  and  farm  organization,  work- 
ing only  in  those  counties  which  have  become  members  of 
the  Bureau. 

On  September  1st  of  the  same  year  thru  the  additional 
co-operation  of  the  State  College  and  the  United  States  De- 


8 BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 

partment  of  Agriculture,  the  Bureau  employed  a State  Leader 
of  Boys’  and  Girls’  Club  Work,  who  has  charge  of  the  agri- 
cultural and  industrial  work  in  so  far  as  it  applies  to  boys 
and  girls.  Here  again  the  Bureau  was  especially  fortunate 
in  securing  a man  of  wide  and  successful  experience  in  this 
line  of  work. 

The  Bureau  is  also  employing  additional  demonstrators 
in  dairying,  club  work,  and  other  lines,  who  will  give  espe- 
cial aid  to  the  County  Agriculturists  in  their  respective 
counties. 

Up  to  date  nine  counties  of  the  state  have  joined  the 
Bureau,  as  follows : Adams,  Benton,  Douglas,  King,  Okan- 
ogan, Spokane,  Thurston,  Wahkiakum.  Walla  Walla.  In 
two  of  these  (King  and  Thurston),  however,  work  has  been 
conducted  but  a short  time.  King  commencing  the  work 
October  15th,  1914,  and  Thurston  January  1st  of  the  present 
year. 

It  would  have  been  possible  to  have  placed  agricul- 
turists in  more  counties  than  this  but  it  was  felt  by  those 
in  charge  of  the  work  as  well  as  by  officials  of  the  U.  S. 
Department  of  Agriculture,  co-operating,  that  the  work 
should  not  be  pushed  too  rapidly  at  the  outset.  The  work 
for  the  state  is,  to  some  extent,  a new  departure  and  to 
have  rushed  a large  force  of  men  into  the  field  without 
adequate  supervision  would  have  meant  certain  failure  in 
some  counties.  As  it  was,  great  care  was  exercised  in  the 
selection  of  men,  only  men  of  thoro  technical  training  and 
a considerable  amount  of  practical  experience  have  been  ap- 
pointed. As  soon  as  a man  is  appointed  in  a county  he  is 
given  a large  amount  of  assistance  and  supervision,  thus  in- 
suring the  efficiency  of  the  work  from  the  start. 

Agricultural  development  is  slow  and  considerable  time 
is  usually  required  in  order  to  make  sufficient  progress  to 
demonstrate  the  value  of  the  work.  The  County  Agricul- 
turist must  deal  with  mature  minds  that  have  met  the  prob- 
lems of  life  in  their  own  waj^s,  minds  that  demand  practical 
results  immediately.  In  starting  and  developing  the  work 
in  any  county  experience,  not  only  in  this  state  but  other 
states  as  well,  has  thoroughly  demonstrated  that  the  fol- 
lowing are  highly  important: 

1.  Before  an  agriculturist  is  employed  for  any  county, 
a good  number  of  the  farming  population  should  be  in 
favor  of  the  work.  In  order  to  secure  this  approval  the 
farmers  must  be  led  to  understand  reasonably  well  the  char- 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


9 


acter  of  the  work  to  be  done,  and  the  part  that  they  have 
to  perform  in  its  prosecution. 

2.  When  the  work  is  undertaken  in  a county  the  matter 
should  be  adequately  financed  for  at  least  two  years.  The 
County  Agriculturist  must  be  given  sufficient  time  to  get 
work  under  way  that  will  show  the  value  of  the  movement. 
In  some  counties  this  can  be  done  in  a few  months  while 
in  others  two  or  more  years  may  be  needed. 

3.  The  supervising  institutions,  the  State  College  and 
the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture  should  contribute  mar 
terially  to  the  funds  for  the  work  in  each  county. 

4.  The  man  selected  as  County  Agriculturist  should  be 
reliable,  competent,  experienced  and  scientifically  trained  in 
agriculture.  The  best  material  available  is  needed  for  this 
work.  To  organize  from  2000  to  3000  farmers  into  working 
units  and  apply  the  available  agricultural  information  to 
their  needs  and  demands  is  no  small  undertaking.  It  re- 
quires leadership  of  a high  order. 

In  order  to  employ  an  Agriculturist  the  Board  of  Com- 
missioners makes  application  in  writing  to  the  Director  of 
the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  for  the  appointment  of 
a man."®^  The  Board  of  County  Commissioners  has  the  right 
to  reject  all  appointments  until  a man  is  secured  that  is 
satisfactory  to  it.  During  the  fiscal  year  ending  June  30, 
1915,  the  State  College  and  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agri- 
culture jointly  contribute  $75  per  month  to  the  salary  of 
each  county  agriculturist.  The  Board  of  County  Commis- 
sioners provides  the  remainder  of  funds  necessary  for  salary 
and  expenses  of  the  agriculturist.  While  it  would  seem  from 
this  arrangement  that  the  county  pays  a disproportionately 
large  share  of  the  expense,  such  is  *not  in  reality  the  case. 
The  salary  of  the  director  and  the  expenses  of  the  office  are 
borne  by  the  State  College.  The  work  in  each  county  is 
supervised  by  the  Vice  Director,  whose  salary  and  expenses 
are  paid  jointly  by  the  State  College  and  U.  S.  Department 
of  Agriculture.  In  addition  to  this  supervision  the  work 
of  the  county  agriculturist  has  been  further  strengthened 
by  the  joint  employment,  by  the  State  College  and  U.  S. 
Department  of  Agriculture,  of  a Farm  Management  Demon- 
strator, a State  Leader  in  Boys’  and  Girls’  Club  Work,  and 
other  special  demonstrators  who  work  practically  exclu- 
sively in  those  counties  which  have  joined  the  Bureau.  The 
State  College  and  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture  also 


*See  Appendix,  page  34. 


10 


bureau  of  farm  development 


furnish  stenographic  help,  offices  and  office  equipment,  post- 
age and  stationery,  and  pay  traveling  expenses  of  all  of 
these  officials.  The  total  amount  thus  expended  in  support 
of  the  work  considerably  exceeds  the  total  expended  by  the 
counties  which  have  joined  the  Bureau. 

Upon  taking  up  his  work  the  County  Agriculturist  be- 
gins a systematic  study  of  the  agricultural  conditions  of 
his  county.  He  searches  out  the  most  reliable  and  successful 
farmers,  visits  them  on  their  farms,  studies  their  methods 
and  practices  in  detail  and  learns  their  viewpoint  of  the 
agricultural  problems  of  the  county.  Such  a study  reveals 
the  agricultural  needs  and  local  problems.  It  shows  the 
line  or  lines  along  which  the  agriculture  of  the  county 
should  be  directed.  The  successful  methods  and  practices 
learned  in  this  way  are  passed  on  from  farm  to  farm. 

During  recent  years  the  various  state  experiment  sta- 
tions and  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  have 
worked  out  a mass  of  agricultural  data  which,  if  properly 
put  into  farm  practice,  would  result  in  a tremendous  finan- 
cial gain  to  the  farmers  and  the  country  as  a whole.  In 
the  past  this  information  has  not  reached  the  farmer  in  an 
effective  way.  The  Experiment  Station  bulletins  of  one 
state  are  seldom  sent  to  farmers  of  other  states  and  com- 
paratively few  farmers  make  use  of  the  bulletins  of  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agriculture  or  their  own  State 
Experiment  Station.  The  County  Agriculturist  acts  as  a 
clearing  house  for  all  this  information.  He  receives  the 
bulletins  issued  by  the  various  State  Experiment  Stations 
and  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture.  He  sifts  this  in- 
formation and  applies  and  disseminates  that  which  is  ap- 
plicable to  the  local  conditions  of  his  county.  This  is  done 
by  farm  demonstrations,  personal  farm  visitations,  the  dis- 
tribution of  bulletins,  lectures,  institutes,  short  courses,  and 
writing  circular  letters  and  newspaper  articles. 

The  study  of  local  conditions  frequently  reveals  prob- 
lems that  require  careful  scientific  investigation.  Being  a 
representative  of  both  the  State  Agricultural  College  and 
the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  the  County  Agricul- 
turist calls  the  attention  of  these  two  institutions  to  the 
problems  he  cannot  handle  himself.  In  this  way  the  county 
receives  the  services  of  specialists  on  specific  problems. 

Perhaps  the  Agriculturist  can  render  the  greatest  service 
to  his  county  as  a leader  and  organizer.  He  furnishes  the 
necessary  enthusiasm  to  inspire  action.  He  leads  the  people 
to  concentrate  upon  the  essential  things.  He  organizes  his 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


11 


county  so  that  he  can  deal  with  groups  instead  of  indi- 
viduals. This  is  especially  essential  in  counties  containing 
from  1000  to  3000  farms. 

RESULTS  BY  COUNTIES 

The  main  lines  of  work  undertaken  in  the  different 
counties  varies  considerably.  This  is  due  to  the  wide  varia- 
tion in  the  climatic  conditions,  types  of  farming  and  agri- 
cultural possibilities  of  the  counties  of  the  state.  In  prac- 
tically every  county  in  which  we  are  now  operating  a very 
large  per  cent  of  the  men’s  time  is  consumed  in  giving 
advice  and  handling  matters  upon  which  a measure  of  value 
cannot  adequately  be  placed.  In  spite  of  this,  however, 
problems  that  are  of  fundamental  importance  are  taken 
up  in  each  county.  The  following  discussion  deals  only 
with  the  more  important  of  these  problems. 

Adams  and  Douglas  Counties. 

The  rainfall  of  Adams  County  varies  from  approxi- 
mately 8 inches  in  the  western  end  of  the  county  to  12 
inches  in  the  eastern  end.  The  soil  of  much  of  the  county, 
especially  the  western  portion,  is  light  and  subject  to  blow- 
ing. Tumble  mustard  (Sisymbrium  altissimum  L.)  and  Rus- 
sian thistle  (Salsola  Tragus)  are  very  troublesome  pests. 

In  Douglas  County  the  altitude  is  higher;  the  rainfall 
is  from  2 to  4 inches  greater  and  a much  smaller  propor- 
tion of  the  land  is  subject  to  bloAving.  Some  of  the  agri- 
cultural problems  that  are  most  vital  and  to  Avhich  the  two 
county  agriculturists  have  given  particular  attention  during 
the  year  are  as  folloAvs : 

1.  The  control  of  blow  soils. 

2.  The  control  of  Aveeds. 

3.  Determination  of  the  forage  crops  best  suited  to 
these  counties  and  hoAv  to  use  and  groAv  them. 

4.  Determining  the  most  satisfactory  methods  of  sum- 
mer fallow  tillage. 

The  scant  rainfall  of  these  two  counties  and  the  lia- 
bility of  much  of  the  soil  to  bhnv  makes  the  solution  of 
these  problems  Ycvy  difficult. 

Comparative  studies  of  the  methods  and  results  of  the 
most  successful  farmers  with  reference  to  these  problems 
have  been  made.  The  information  gathered  in  this  way  to- 
gether Avith  the  experimental  and  demonstrational  work  of 
the  season  has  shoAvn  that  bloAv  soils  can  usually  be  con- 
trolled (a)  by  proper  tillage  and  (b)  by  substituting  stock 
raising  for  the  summer  falloAv  wheat  system.  The  year’s 


12 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


work  has  also  shown  the  methods  and  principles  that  must 
be  observed  in  controlling  weeds. 

Farmers  in  various  parts  of  the  county  are  co-operating 
in  growing  forage  crops.  Alfalfa  in  rows,  sweet  clover  and 
Sudan  grass  gave  very  promising  results  the  past  season. 
During  the  past  season  the  work,  of  necessity,  has  been 
largely  investigational.  The  coming  season  it  will  assume 
a more  positive  form.  It  will  be  more  purely  demonstra- 
tional. 

Benton  County 

In  Benton  County  there  are  two  distinct  types  of  farm- 
ing, irrigated  and  non-irrigated.  Since  the  Dry  Land  De- 
partment of  the  State  College  has  a special  representative 
who  is  giving  his  entire  time  to  the  dry  farming  districts 
of  the  county,  the  County  Agriculturist  has  given  most  of 
his  attention  to  the  irrigated  farming.  When  the  Agricul- 
turist began  work  in  May,  1913,  orcharding  and  alfalfa 
production  for  the  market  were  the  prominent  features  of 
the  agriculture  of  the  county.  Many  of  the  alfalfa  fields 
were  so  badly  infested  with  so-called  “wild  cheat”  that  the 
quality  of  the  hay  was  seriously  damaged.  The  price  of 
hay  was  also  so  low  that  there  was  little  profit  in  its  pro- 
duction. The  irrigated  soils  of  the  county  are  naturally 
deficient  in  organic  matter  and  nitrogen.  This  condition 
was  further  aggravated  by  the  fact  that  the  majority  of 
the  orchards  were  given  clean  cultivation.  Many  of  the 
orchardists  were  having  difficulty  in  making  a living  be- 
cause they  were  relying  too  much  upon  the  fruit  crop  as 
a source  of  income.  With  these  conditions  duly  considered 
the  following  were  made  the  principal  lines  of  work  during 
the  past  season: 

1.  Building  up  the  fertility  of  the  soil  with  green 
manures  and  cover  crops. 

2.  Building  up  the  hog  and  dairy  industries. 

3.  The  production  of  corn  for  ensilage  and  grain  feed. 

4.  Keeping  cheat  under  control  in  alfalfa  fields. 

Much  interest  has  been  manifested  along  all  these  lines. 

The  use  of  cover  crops  is  becoming  very  general.  In  the 
past  the  hog  and  dairy  industries  have  been  seriously  handi- 
capped for  the  want  of  a grain  crop.  This  want  is  being 
met  by  the  production  of  corn.  The  acreage  of  corn  grown 
in  the  county  this  year  is  ten  times  that  of  any  previous 
year.  Eighteen  months  ago  the  number  of  silos  in  the 
county  was  seven,  while  at  the  present  time  there  are  forty- 


Fig.  I.  A Benton  County  hog  excursion  party  inspecting  the  farrowing  pens  of 
Kraber  Brothers,  Finley,  Washington.  Lee  M.  Lampson,  Agriculturist  for  Benton  County, 
conducted  the  excursion.  During  the  day  five  hog  farms  were  visited. 


14 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


two.  During  the  past  year  eighteen  farmers- carried  on 
demonstrations  to  control  cheat  in  alfalfa.  This  is  done 
by  disking  the  field  thoroughly  in  the  early  fall  and  sowing 
a bushel  of  winter  wheat  per  acre.  The  wheat,  if  started 
early  in  the  fall,  prevents  the  growth  of  the  cheat. 

Okanogan  County 

In  Okanogan  County  approximately  22,000  acres  of  irri- 
gated land  has  been  planted  to  orchards.  The  average  age 
of  the  trees  is  four  years,  from  date  of  planting.  Very 
generally  these  orchards  are  owned  by  parties  having  no 
previous  horticultural  training  or  experience.  Many  of 
them  are  non-residents  who  hire  their  work  done.  The 
pruning,  spraying  and  orchard  management  in  general  has 
been  carried  on  in  most  cases  upon  the  paid  advice  of 
consulting  horticulturists.  Such  advice  is  usually  expensive. 
In  some  instances  it  has  been  satisfactory,  and  vice  versa. 

One  of  the  chief  objects  the  County  Commissioners  had 
in  view  when  they  called  for  the  appointment  of  a County 
Agriculturist  was  the  placing  of  the  orchard  industry  on 
a more  substantial  basis.  That  is,  they  desired  to  make  the 
individual  growers  more  independent.  In  addition  to  this 
the  planting  season  was  practically  over  when  the  work 
was  begun  in  Okanogan  County,  which  commenced  April 
20.  Because  of  these  conditions  the  major  portion  of  the 
work  this  season  has  been  devoted  to  orchard  management. 
There  has  been  two  principal  phases  to  the  orchard  work; 

1.  The  control  of  orchard  pests. 

2.  The  encouragement  of  the  use  of  cover  crops. 

The  work  on  fire  blight  will  serve  to  illustrate  the  first 
of  these.  In  the  Wenatchee  and  Cashmere  districts  to  the 
south  and  in  the  Penticton  district  in  British  Columbia  to 
the  north,  fire  blight  has  been  playing  havoc  for  several 
years.  This  year  it  made  its  appearance  in  five  places  in 
Okanogan  County.  The  orchardists  became  very  much 
alarmed  and  a great  blight  scare  prevailed.  Everyone 
imagined  his  orchard  was  affected  and  was  anxious  for  the 
County  Agriculturist  to  visit  his  orchard  to  be  sure  that 
there  was  no  blight  or  other  contagions  diseases.  In  one 
week  162  calls  were  made  asking  for  orchard  inspection. 
During  the  season,  720  farms  Avere  visited.  By  prompt 
action  in  cutting,  burning  and  disinfecting,  the  blight  was 
apparently  stamped  out  of  the  five  orchards.  In  order  to 
teach  the  growers  hoAv  to  recognize  and  fight  blight,  three 
blight  excursions  were  made  to  Penticton,  British  Columbia, 


culturist  for  Okanogan  County. 


16 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


where  they  saw  the  real  blight  and  blight  fighting.  Auto- 
mobile owners  donated  the  use  of  their  cars  for  the  good 
of  the  cause  and  130  interested  men  made  the  trip.  These 
men  were  selected  so  that  there  would  be  someone  in  every 
community  who  knows  blight. 

The  orchard  soils  of  Okanogan  County,  like  those  of 
Benton,  need  building  up  in  organic  matter.  In  many  of 
the  orchards  cover  crops  were  already  being  grown.  By 
taking  well-managed  orchards  as  illustrations  a constant 
campaign  has  been  carried  on  for  cover  crops  and  against 
clean  cultivation.  As  a result,  it  is  estimated  that  there 
has  been  an  increase  of  25  per  cent  in  the  use  of  cover  crops. 

Beginning  February  1st  pruning  schools  will  be  held  as 
follows:  Two  weeks  on  the  Reclamation  Project  at  Omak; 
one  week  on  Brewster  Flats,  and  one  week  in  the  Methow 
Valley  near  Carleton,  Washington.  These  schools  will  be 
conducted  in  co-operation  with  Messrs.  Clawson  and  Barn- 
hill of  the  State  Department  of  Agriculture  and  instructors 
from  the  State  College.  Those  in  attendance  will  be  drilled 
in  pruning  trees  of  different  ages  beginning  with  one-year- 
old  trees. 

Spokane  County 

Spokane  County,  it  is  estimated  has  $30,000,000  invested 
in  the  apple  industry.  During  the  season  of  1913  the  rav- 
ages of  apple  scab  were  so  severe  that  not  more  than  10 
to  15  per  cent  of  the  crop  graded  as  fancy  and  extra  fancy. 
Fire  blight  and  other  diseases  also  were  giving  considerable 
trouble. 

The  work  undertaken  in  Spokane  County  has  chiefly 
dealt  with  horticultural  problems.  In  the  early  winter  of 
last  year  an  educational  campaign  as  to  the  best  methods 
of  handling  apple  scab  and  other  orchard  diseases  was 
started.  Much  of  the  winter  was  consumed  in  holding  meet- 
ings in  the  apple  growing  localities,  at  which  instructions 
were  given  as  to  how  to  combat  apple  scab.  As  a result 
of  this  work  few  orchards  in  the  Spokane  district  had  any 
perceptible  amount  of  scab  in  them  during  the  season  of 
1914. 

While  the  scab  campaign  was  going  on  during  the  late 
winter  and  early  spring,  pruning  demonstrations  were  also 
conducted.  The  men  assembled  were  taken  into  the  or- 
chards where  considerable  time  was  spent  pruning  trees  of 
different  ages  and  varieties.  After  holding  a pruning  dem- 
onstration the  balance  of  the  day  was  spent  on  individual 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


17 


farms  where  at  least  one  tree  was  pruned  in  order  to  leave 
an  illustration  of  how  the  work  should  be  done.  So  effective 
were  these  demonstrations  that  the  County  Agriculturist  has 
been  accused  of  putting  the  professional  pruner  out  of 
business. 

The  County  Agriculturist  has  also  rendered  valuable 
service  in  identifying  orchard  diseases  and  teaching  the 
growers  the  nature  of  and  how  to  combat  the  same.  Sev- 
eral diseases  have  been  prevalent  in  this  county  for  several 
years  but  their  identity  was  not  known  to  the  orchard  men. 
Among  the  diseases  so  identified  were  California  peach  blight 
and  anthracnose  of  the  apple  tree.  Upon  several  occasions 
the  State  Experiment  Station  was  called  upon  and  rendered 
valuable  assistance  in  handling  orchard  pests. 

The  County  Agriculturist  of  Spokane  County  has  the 
distinction  of  having  organized  the  first  apple  club  in  the 
world.  Each  club  boy  took  complete  charge  of  a block  of 
12  bearing  trees.  These  trees  were  pruned,  sprayed  and 
cultivated  and  the  fruit  was  thinned,  picked  and  packed  by 
the  boys  themselves.  An  account  of  doing  all  this  work  was 
also  kept  and  the  cost  of  production  determined. 

Perhaps  one  of  the  most  important  achievements  in 
Spokane  County  during  the  year  has  been  the  gathering 
of  information  that  shows  that  clover  and  alfalfa  can  be 
successfully  sown  with  the  cereal  crops  and  working  out  a 
suitable  rotation  containing  clover.  A number  of  farmers 
were  found  who  successfully  seed  clover  with  a nurse  crop, 
spring  barley  being  the  most  satisfactory.  The  rotation  as 
developed  is  as  follows*:  First  year,  spring  barley  with 
clover ; second  year,  clover ; third  year,  field  peas ; and 
fourth  year,  winter  wheat. 

Wahkiakum  County 

Wahkiakum  County  is  rough  and  covered  with  brush 
and  timber.  The  land  best  suited  to  farming  is  situated  in 
the  small  valleys  and  along  the  Columbia  River.  Much  of 
this,  however,  is  tide  fiats  which  must  be  diked  and  cleared 
before  it  can  be  farmed.  Only  a very  small  per  cent  of  the 
county  is  under  cultivation  and  one  of  the  greatest  needs 
at  the  present  time  is  the  reclamation  of  the  tide  flat  lands. 

The  agriculture  of  the  county  consists  almost  entirely 
of  specialized  dairy  farming.  Approximately  95  per  cent 
of  the  total  farm  receipts  are  derived  from  the  dairy  herd. 
During  the  year  just  closing  there  has  been  two  chief  pur- 
poses in  the  work  of  the  County  Agriculturist.  These  are 
as  follows: 


18 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


1.  The  reclamation  of  tide  flat  land. 

2.  The  building  up  of  the  dairy  industry. 

Puget  Island  in  the  Columbia  River  contains  3400  acres 
of  tide  flat  land.  It  is  owned  and  settled  by  fishermen.  Sev- 
eral times  they  have  attempted  to  organize  and  reclaim  the 
island.  Every  attempt  was  a failure  until  they  secured  the 
assistance  of  the  County  Agriculturist.  He  studied  the  diking 
law  anct  airectcd  tlic  organization  of  a diking  district.  The 
present  speculative  value  of  this  land  is  $20  per  acre,  or 
$68,000.  The  land  when  diked  Vvnll  easily  be  worth  $200 
X)er  acre,  or  $680,000.  This  will  give  the  county  an  in- 
creased valuation  of  approximately  $487,000. 


Fig.  III.  A meeting  of  the  residents  of  Puget  Jsiand,  called 
by  Geo.  A.  Nelson,  Agri  cnlturist  of  Wahkiakinn  County,  for  the 
])urpose  of  organizing  a diking  district. 


The  dairy  industry  is  being  improved  in  a number  of 
ways : 

1.  In  relation  to  feeds.  Kale  has  been  introduced  to 
furnish  succulent  feed  during  the  fall  and  winter,  field  peas 
to  be  used  as  a soiling  crop  during  the  summer,  and  clover 
to  improve  the  quality  of  the  grass  hay.  Considerable  atten- 
tion has  also  been  given  to  more  economical  and  more  nearly 
balanced  rations. 


Fig.  IV.  (''anniiig  Club  in  Wabkiakuin  County,  Geo.  A.  Xelscn,  County  Agriculturist, 
working  with  club  in  Seal  Eiver  School. 


20 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


2.  In  relation  to  diseases.  Contagious  abortion  has 
caused  heavy  financial  losses  in  this  county.  The  County 
Agriculturist  secured  the  assistance  of  the  State  Experiment 
Station  veterinarian  and  held  a series  of  meetings.  He  placed 
literature  on  the  subject  into  the  hands  of  those  interested 
and  gave  them  personal  assistance.  At  the  present  time  this 
disease  is  under  much  better  control. 

3.  In  relation  to  the  quality  of  sires.  An  investigation 
of  fourteen  dairy  herds  of  this  county  shows  a production 
of  $20  more  per  cow  by  the  herds  that  have  been  headed 
by  registered  sires  than  is  produced  by  the  herds  using 
grade  and  scrub  sires.  During  the  year  eight  registered 
sires  have  been  purchased  to  replace  scrubs.  During  1913 
twelve  were  purchased.  Since  the  twenty  bulls  head  herds 
containing  about  350  cows,  this  should  result  in  a financial 
gain  of  $7000  per  year. 

4.  In  relation  to  quality  of  cows.  A farm  survey  of 
44  farms  by  the  County  Agriculturist  shows  that  the  aver- 
age receipts  from  milk  and  butterfat  was  $60  per  cow  on 
the  16  poorest  farms  and  $92  on  the  12  best  farms.  The 
receipts  from  many  cows  were  much  less  than  $60.  Hence, 
the  importance  of  determining  the  performance  of  each 
cow  in  order  to  be  able  to  discard  the  poor  ones.  During 
the  year  1914  sixty-two  farmers  co-operated  in  weighing  and 
testing  the  milk  from  834  cows.  This  is  an  increase  of  over 
700  cows  during  the  last  two  years,  a little  more  than  100 
cows  being  under  test  when  the  farm  bureau  work  began 
in  the  county  in  November,  1912  . 

By  keeping  records  of  his  cows  and  using  good  bulls 
one  dairyman  increased  the  production  of  butterfat  18  lbs. 
per  cow  each  year  for  five  years.  If  as  good  results  are 
secured  with  the  700  cows  this  will  mean  an  increased  pro- 
duction of  12,600  lbs.  of  butterfat  each  year.  At  30  cents 
per  pound  this  will  amount  to  a gain  each  year  of  $3780 
over  the  previous  year. 

Walla  Walla  County 

Walla  Walla  County  contains  some  of  the  oldest  or- 
chards in  the  state  and  the  apple  is  one  of  its  most  impor- 
tant crops.  During  the  last  four  years  fire  blight  has  b6en 
a serious  menace  and  the  codling  moth  has  been  extremely 
troublesome  for  many  years.  It  was  to  handle  these  and 
other  horticultural  problems  more  especially  that  the  Walla 
Walla  County  Commissioners  called  for  the  appointment  of 
a County  Agriculturist.  The  control  of  these  two  pests, 


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22 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


therefore,  was  made  the  leading  feature  of  the  work  in 
Walla  Walla  County. 

In  undertaking  these  problems  it  was  recognized  that 
permanent  progi*ess  could  be  attained  only  in  an  educational 
campaign  in  Avhich  the  growers  would  learn  the  nature  of 
the  pests  and  the  reasons  for  taking  each  step  in  their 
control. 

With  the  assistance  of  the  District  Horticultural  In- 
spector, and  many  others  interested  in  the  fruit  industry, 
the  AValla  AValla  County  Fruit  Protective  Association  was 
formed.  The  county  was  divided  into  districts  and  a com- 
mittee appointed  for  each  division.  Each  committee  was 
expected  to  inspect  the  orchards  in  its  district.  Nine  dem- 
onst]*ational  meetings  were  held  in  different  parts  of  the 
county  with  a total  attendance  of  462.  The  purpose  of 
these  meetings  was  to  let  the  growers  sec  blight  in  as  many 
forms  as  possible  and  teach  them  by  demonstration  the 
methods  of  conti'ol.  The  Count}^  Agriculturist  also  held  163 
individual  consultations  with  growers  on  the  nature  of  this 
disease  and  the  methods  of  its  control. 

Few  apple  growers  really  know  the  codling  moth.  They 
all  know  the  worm  but  they  do  not  know  the  insect  in  the 
four  stages  of  its  life  cycle — the  moth,  egg,  pupa,  and 
larva  or  worm.  There  were  two  purposes  in  the  work  un- 
dertaken v'ith  reference  to  the  codling  moth;  (1)  to  teach 
the  growers  moi'e  about  the  insect;  and  (2)  to  determine 
as  acciu'ately  as  possible  the  time  to  give  the  later  spray 
application.  This  was  done  by  the  use  of  nine  breeding 
cages  located  in  different  parts  of  the  county.  Ninety  per 
cent  of  the  apple  gi*owei*s  followed  the  spray  date  very 
closely,  as  announced,  in  doing  their  spraying.  The  follow- 
ing are  some  of  th<‘  results  secured:  Apples  free  from  worms, 
Mr.  Taggard  of  Waitsburg,  97  per  cent;  Mr.  Maltorn  of 
Walla  Walla,  93  per  cent;  Mr.  Johnston,  Horticulturist  for 
the  Baker-Eangdon  6C0-acre  orchard,  98  per  cent  on  200 
acres,  the  second  year  in  bearing  with  wormy  orchards  on 
three  sides.  Last  year  JVIessi's.  Allen  and  Maltorn  had  nearly 
50  per  cent  of  woi'iny  apples.  The  breeding  cage  work  also 
demonstrated  the  fact  that  a large  number  of  worms  would 
1)0  entering  the  apples  the  latter  part  of  August.  The  spray 
date  for  this  })rood  of  Avorms  Avas  announced.  The  owner 
of  one  large  orchard  Avho  sprayed  at  this  time  left  one  row 
of  trees  unspi*ayed.  A careful  check  of  the  results  shoAved 
the  sprayed  portion  to  be  7 per  cent  freer  of  worms  than 
the  unsprayed. 


Walla  Walla  County.  The  party  consisted  of  250  people.  Three  hog  farms  were  visited. 


24 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


One  local  produce  dealer  states  that  he  sold  eight  times 
as  much  arsenate  of  lead  this  year  as  last  year  and  that 
the  apples  he  received  were  from  20  to  25  per  cent  freer 
from  worms  than  those  received  in  1913.  Thirty  of  the 
growers  co-operated  in  using  the  double  blossom  spray  and 
the  County  Agriculturist  held  231  consultations  with  indi- 
viduals regarding  the  codling  moth,  spray  dates,  manner  of 
spraying  and  material  to  use. 


FINANCIAL  STATEMENT  FOR  COUNTY  AGRICULTURISTS 

The  following  statement  shows  the  expenses  for  the 
agriculturist  alone  in  each  county  during  the  year  1914. 
This  takes  no  account  of  the  overhead  expenses  of  the  Bu- 
reau, the  expense  of  supervision  or  additional  assistants  pro- 
vided. 


County 

Months 

Salary* 

All  Expenses 

Total 

Adams  

12 

$ 1,800.00  . 

$ 

669.60 

$ 2,469.60 

Benton  

12 

1,667.00 

891.50 

2,558.50 

Douglas  

12 

1,915.00 

1,180.35** 

3,095.35 

Spokane  

12 

2,400.00 

1,100.38** 

3,500.38 

Walla  Walla  

12 

1,360.00 

664.00 

2,024.00 

Wahkiakum  

12 

1,600.00 

492.37 

2,092.37 

Okanogan  

8 % 

1,250.00 

1,127.75 

2,377.75 

Total  

$ 

6,125.95** 

$18,117.95 

Average  salary  .... 

..$  1,791.71 

*Including  $75  per  month  for  each  county,  paid  by  the  State  College  and  U.  S. 
Department  of  Agriculture. 

**Contains  one-half  of  the  purchase  price  of  an  automobile.  Except  in  Wahki- 
akum County,  each  county  agriculturist  is  provided  with  an  automobile,  since  this 
increases  his  elhciency  from  two  to  three-fold.  The  first  cost  of  the  automobile,  of 
course,  makes  the  expenses  of  the  office  high  for  the  first  year.  After  the  first  year 
the  expenses  are  considerably  reduced. 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


25 


SUMMARY  OF  THE  WORK  OF  THE  COUNTY 
AGRICULTURISTS 

January  1,  1914,  to  December  31,  1914 

The  following  pertains  exclusively  to  work  done  either 
by  the  seven  County  Agriculturists  or  on  their  recommenda- 
tions : 

(A)  Work  Done  in  Relation  to  the  People: 

1.  Farmers  visited  on  their  farms 2,518 

2.  Total  number  of  farm  visits  made 4,067 

3.  Business  calls  on  Agriculturist  at  ofi&ce  543 

4.  Meetings  addressed  340 

5.  Total  attendance  at  such  meetings 20,081 

6.  Boys’  and  Girls’  Clubs  organized 24 

7.  Total  membership  in  such  clubs 374 

8.  Agricultural  articles  published  in  county  papers 98 

9.  Circulars,  circular  letters  or  bulletins  written 13 

10.  Copies  of  such  circulars  or  bulletins  distributed 1,825 

11.  Copies  of  annual  report  distributed 42 

12.  Copies  of  State  and  U,  S.  Bulletins  distributed 5,470 

13.  Letters  written  3,393 

14.  Schools  assisted  in  developing  agricultural  instruction 92 

15.  Pupils  reached  by  such  instruction 3,000 

16.  Agricultural  observation  parties  conducted  25 

17.  Total  persons  in  such  parties  1,118 

18.  Farmers  conducting  demonstrations  for  Agriculturists 562 

19.  Meetings  held  to  inspect  demonstrations 30 

20.  Total  attendance  at  such  meetings 204 

(B)  Work  Done  in  Relation  to  the  Farm  and  Farmstead  on 
Suggestion  of  County  Agriculturists : 

21.  Farm  buildings  planned  or  improved 32 

22.  Silos  constructed  11 

23.  Home  grounds  planned  or  improved 6 

24.  Sanitary  conditions  improved  27 

25.  Farm  plans  made,  either  partial  or  complete 150 

26.  Farms  upon  w^hich  the  seasonal  distribution  of  labor  has 

been  improved  450 

27.  Drainage  systems  planned  6 

28.  Irrigation  systems  planned  16 

(C)  Work  Done  in  Relation  to  Crops  on  Suggestion  of 
County  Agriculturists  or  Under  Their  Direction: 

29.  Farms  field  selecting  seed  corn  98 

30.  Farms  testing  corn  for  germination  20 

31.  Farms  growing  corn  463 

32.  Acres  of  corn  grown  1,793 

33.  Farms  growing  wheat  80 

34.  Acres  of  wheat  grown  2,735 

35.  Farms  growing  oats  52 

36.  Acres  of  oats  grown  354 

37.  Farms  using  hill-selected  seed  potatoes  90 

38.  Farms  treating  potatoes  for  scab  165 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


26 


39.  Farms  growing  potatoes  345 

40.  Acres  of  potatoes  grown  1,100 

41.  Farms  growing  hay  410 

42.  Acres  of  hay  grown  ; 3,250 

43.  Farms  planting  alfalia  218 

44.  Acres  of  alfalfa  planted  1,350 

4 5.  Acres  of  field  peas  grown  on  summer  fallow  200 

4 6.  Farms  growing  barley  31 

47.  Acres  of  bailey  grown  226 

48.  Orchards  cared  for  in  whole  or  in  part  1,450 

(D)  Work  Done  in  Relation  to  Livestock  on  Suggestion  of 
County  Agriculturists: 

49.  Registered  bulls  secured  15 

50.  Registere<l  boars  secured  23 

51.  Registered  sires  transferred  from  one  community  to  another  7 

52.  Dairy  cows  purchased  73 

53.  Cows  tested  for  milk  production  thru  associations  or  otherwise  1,178 

54.  Farmers  influenced  to  feed  more  livestock  600 

55.  Balanced  rations  figured  and  adopted  250 

56.  Farms  given  information  on  poultry  management 64 

(E)  Work  Done  in  Relation  to  Fertilizers  and  Fertility  on 
Suggestion  of  County  Agriculturists : 

57.  Farms  making  better  use  of  manure,  straw,  etc 290 

58.  Farms  using  commercial  fertilizer  58 

59.  Acres  of  vetch  grown  1,000 

60.  Acres  of  sweet  clover  grown  115 

61.  Acres  of  rye  grown  , 1,960 

62.  Acres  of  above  mentioned  crops  grown  for  green  manure  or 

winter  cover  purposes  3,077 

(F)  Work  Done  in  Relation  to  Farm  Business  on  Advice  of 
County  Agriculturists  or  Under  Their  Direction: 

63.  Farmers  keeping  accounts,  partial  or  complete 106 

64.  Farmers  using  parcel  post  in  marketing 35 


DEMONSTRATIONS  IN  FARM  MANAGEMENT 

Under  the  supervision  of  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Develop- 
ment the  State  Colletsie  of  Washington,  in  co-operation  with 
the  U.  8.  Department  of  Agriculture,  has  undertaken  dem- 
onstration Avork  in  farm  management.  The  leader  in  this 
woi'k  is  known  as  the  Farm  Management  Demonstrator.  The 
ol)ject  of  this  Avoi'k  is:  (1)  To  demonstrate  to  farmers  the 
importance  of  certain  ivell  knoAvii  factors  that  influence  the 
profltal)leness  of  farming,  and  (2)  to  increase  the  efficiency 
of  the  Avork  of  the  County  Agriculturist. 

The  Farm  Management  Demonstrator  Avorks  Avith  groups 
of  from  sixty  to  one  hundred  farmers  in  selected  areas  in 
counties  employing  County  Agriculturists,  in  the  following 
manner : 

1.  Analyses  are  made  of  the  business  of  each  farm  in 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


27 


the  selected  areas  with  special  reference  to  the  labor  in- 
come and  the  important  factors  governing  same. 

2.  Arrangements  are  then  made  with  the  operator  of 
each  farm,  as  the  result  of  the  analj^sis,  to  make  such  modi- 
fications in  his  farm  organization  as  may  be  found  prac- 
ticable, to  the  end  of  increasing  the  net  income  of  the  farm. 

3.  The  analysis  will  be  repeated  the  following  year 
and  for  a number  of  years  thereafter  in  order  to  determine 
the  results  of  the  changes  suggested  to  each  co-operating 
farmer  and  in  order  to  make  such  further  modifications  in 
the  farm  business  as  may  seem  desirable  and  practicable. 

4.  In  so  far  as  possible,  arrangements  are  made  with 
each  co-operating  farmer  to  keep  a farm  business  diary  of 
his  work  covering  each  business  year  during  which  the  dem- 
onstration is  carried  on.  Farmers  are  also  assembled  in 
small  groups  when  practicable  and  instructed  as  to  methods 
of  working  out  their  labor  income,  or  net  profits. 

5.  In  selecting  the  demonstration  areas,  an  effort  is 
made  (a)  to  have  them  well  distributed  within  the  state, 
(b)  to  have  them  typical  of  the  more  extensive  farming 
areas,  (3)  to  have  them  uniform  within  themselves  and  (d) 
to  locate  them  in  counties  having  county  agriculturists. 

The  Farm  Management  Demonstrator  was  employed  on 
September  16,  1914.  The  first  five  weeks  were  spent  in  spe- 
cial preparation  for  the  work.  On  November  2,  1914,  a 
farm  management  demonstration  was  started  in  Wahkiakum 
County.  Eighty-seven  farm  survey  records  were  taken, 
eighty  of  which  were  used  in  the  tabulations.  In  taking  the 
records  the  County  Agriculturist  rendered  valuable  assist- 
ance. The  following  tables  are  taken  from  the  Farm  Man- 
agement Demonstrator’s  report  for  the  closing  year.  They 
show  the  factors  that  influence  the  profitableness  of  dairy 
farming  in  Wahkiakum  County  that  we  wish  to  demon- 
strate to  the  farmers. 

Factors  that  Influence  Profits  in  Dairy  Farming 
Wahkiakum  County,  1914 

Average  12  Best  12  Poorest 

80  Farms  Farms  Farms 


Labor  income  $ 450  $ 1,400  $ 123 

Size 

Total  capital  12,580  21,168  11,362 

Crop  acres  18.5  24.5  15.2 

Pasture  acres  33.6  47  27 

Number  milk  cows 15.2  26.3  12 

Total  receipts  1,916  3,796  1,048 


28 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


Diversity 
Incomes  over  $50: 


Butterfat  

1,054 

2,352 

536 

Cattle  

378 

615 

191 

Poultry  

59 

54 

Swine  

142 

291 

76 

Potatoes  

95 

220 

Quality 

Receipts  per  cow  

66.8 

92 

45 

Yields  per  acre: 

Potatoes  

173 

200 

178 

Meadow  hay  

2.6 

2.7 

2. 

Oat  hay  

3.2 

3.4 

2 

Total  expense  

824 

1,338 

604 

Labor  expense  

373 

770 

254 

Relation  of  Receipts  per  Cow  to  Labor  Income 


Number 

Receipt 

Number 

Labor 

Farms 

Per  Cow 

Cows 

Income 

$55  and  under 

18 

41 

9.5 

108 

56  to  75  

30 

66 

16 

496 

76  to  90  

14 

80  . 

16 

557 

91  to  100  

6 

95 

19 

797 

101  and  over  .... 

5 

111 

23 

1580 

Relation 

of  Crop  and  Pasture  Acres  and  Capital 
Labor  Income 

Number 

to 

Labor 

■ Acres 

Ave.  Acres 

Capital 

Farms 

Income 

1 to  15  

14.8 

6,179 

3 

9 

15  to  30  

24.7 

6,719 

20 

271.6 

30  to  45  

37.5 

9,444 

19 

424.8 

45  to  60  

52.9 

13,946 

16 

431.9 

60  to  75  

67.4 

16,246 

13 

755.8 

75  to  90  

81 

21,191 

5 

570.8 

More  than  90  .. 

196.8 

37,119 

4 

888 

Relation  of  Receipts  per  Cow  to 

Value  per  Cow 

Ave.  Ave.  Ave. 

Number  of 

Rec. 

No. 

Value 

Receipts  per  Cow  Farms 

per  Cow 

' Cows 

per  Cow 

$55  or  under  .... 

18 

41 

9.5 

59 

56  to  75  

30 

66 

16 

56 

76  to  90  

14 

80 

16 

73 

91  to  100  

6 

95 

19 

86 

101  and  over  .... 

5 

111 

23 

82 

Effect  of  Sire  on  Average  Receipt  and  Value  per  Cow 

Ave.  Ave. 
Total  No.  Number  Receipt  Value 

Cows  Farms  per  Cow  per  Cow 

Pure  bred  sire  in  herd  more  than 


three  years  153  8 94.8  90.6 

Grade  sire  702  49  64  59.7 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


29 


CLUB  WORK 

Nature  of  Club  Work — Not  least  in  importance  in  the 
activities  of  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  is  the  club 
work.  As  a part  of  the  great  social  movement  for  the  dis- 
semination of  information  in  agricultural  and  industrial 
lines  this  work  with  the  boys  and  girls  has  assumed  a mag- 
nitude and  significance  undreamed  of  by  its  original  pro; 
moters. 

Started  but  a few  years  ago,  it  has  already  become 
nation  wide  in  character.  All  but  two  of  the  thirty-three 
northern  and  western  states  now  have  employed  club  spe- 
cialists in  this  work. 

Since  the  agricultural  and  industrial  progress  of  the 
country  is  largely  dependent  upon  the  constantly  increasing 
efficiency  and  contentment  of  the  agricultural  and  industrial 
classes'  any  movement  which  has  this  for  its  purpose  is 
worthy  of  the  greatest  encouragement.  This  problem  is  met 
by  working  with  the  boys  and  girls,  since  it  is  recognized 
in  any  system  of  education  that  instruction  is  vastly  more 
effective  with  younger  than  with  older  people.  The  young, 
in  marked  contrast  to  their  elders,  seize  with  avidity  the 
newer  and  more  progressive  practices  and  appreciate  their 
underlying  principles.  In  every  part  of  the  country  they 
have  entered  with  enthusiasm  upon  the  agricultural  work 
and  in  very  many  cases  their  accomplishments  have  far  ex- 
celled those  of  their  parents.  The  club  movement  is  destined 
to  create  an  interest  and  efficiency  in  agriculture,  which,  in 
the  next  generation,  will  mean  much  for  the  country. 

This  line  of  work  has  made  heavy  demands  upon  the 
time  of  the  already  over-worked  County  Agriculturist, — so 
much  so,  in  fact,  that  it  has  been  found  advisable  to  segre- 
gate it  under  a separate  department.  The  duties  of  the 
County  Agriculturist  are  many  and  exceedingly  varied;  his 
efficiency  can  be  greatly  increased  by  giving  him  the  assist- 
ance of  specialists  in  some  lines.  There  has,  therefore,  been 
employed  a leader  of  boys’  and  girls’  club  work  who  de- 
votes his  entire  time  to  the  work,  primarily  in  those  coun- 
ties which  have  joined  the  Bureau. 

Especial  attention  is  called  to  the  fact  that  this  work 
is  not  contest  work,  tho  occasional  contests  and  fairs  may 
result  from  it.  The  work  is  fundamental  in  nature  and  has 
to  do  with  the  establishment  of  permanent  interest  and  con- 
structive work  in  agriculture.  It  is  a national  project  for 
the  purpose  of  demonstrating  correct  farm  practices  and 
economic  production  in  the  homes.  It  is  a performance  of 


30 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


a definite  farm,  garden,  or  home  interest  enterprises  and  is 
based  on  the  best  economic  practices  of  farm  and  home  activi- 
ties. It  aims  to  teach  better  methods  of  agriculture  and 
home  economics.  When  co-ordinated  with  school  work  it 
serves  greatly  to  increase  interest  in  all  of  the  school  studies 
as  well  as  the  other  activities  of  the  community.  It  pro- 
vides an  opportunity  for  boys  and  girls  to  make  some  money 
at  home  rather  than  the  mistaken  idea  that  they  must  leave 
home  in  order  to  make  money. 

The  Work  of  the  Clubs — Club  projects  are  usually  out- 
lined to  cover  a season’s  work  of  from  four  to  ten  months. 
The  club  work  may  be  closely  correlated  with  school  exer- 
cises and  made  to  cover  the  entire  year.  Corn,  potato,  alfalfa, 
home  garden,  and  canning  clubs  represent  various  types  of 
club  projects.  When  possible,  the  members  of  the  clubs 
are  allowed  to  receive  and  keep  the  net  profits  resulting 
from  their  club  work.  The  work  requires  careful  study  of 
instructions,  the  making  of  observations,  the  keeping  of 
accurate  records,  the  making  of  exhibits  at  fairs,  and  the 
grading,  crating  and  marketing  of  their  products. 

Objects  of  Club  Work — The  principal  objects  of  club 
work  may  be  listed  as  follows : 

1.  To  offer  to  the  young  people  careful  guidance  which 
will  lead  to  a better  type  of  farmers  and  home- 
builders. 

2.  To  demonstrate  through  the  boys  and  girls,  the  best 
farm  and  home  j^ractices. 

3.  To  enlist  the  interest  and  efforts  of  the  boys  and 
girls  in  problems  of  efficiency  and  economy. 

4.  To  demonstrate  the  best  methods  of  handling  farm 
products  and  to  prevent  waste  in  orchard,  field,  and 
garden  thru  home  canning  and  better  systems  of 
marketing. 

5.  To  ofi’er  to  young  people  the  proper  incentive  for 
their  own  personal  conservation  and  the  conserva- 
tion of  American  farm  life. 

6.  To  cultivate  in  boys  and  girls  habits  of  industry  and 
thrift. 

Results — The  work  is  new  in  the  State  of  Washington, 
not  having  been  begun  until  September  I,  1914. 

Tho  the  work  has  been  under  way  but  three  months 
much  has  been  accomplished.  In  addition  to  much  work 
already  conducted  during  the  entire  year  by  the  regular 
County  Agriculturist,  the  State  Leader’s  work  may  be  sum- 
marized as  follows: 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


31 


1.  Clubs  formed,  46,  as  follows: 

Gardens  and  Canning  28 

Pig  and  Poultry  10 

Corn  and  Alfalfa  4 

Grain  and  Miscellaneous  3 

Thrift  and  Marketing  1 

2.  Lectures  and  demonstrations  given 33 

Attendance  approximately  3300 


3.  Assisted  at  Children’s  Industrial  Pairs,  Tacoma, 
Walla  Walla,  North  Yakima,  Spokane  and  Prosser. 
(A  definite  co-operative  agreement  has  been  entered 
into  with  the  State  Department  of  Education  in  con- 
nection with  the  children’s  agricultural  and  industrial 
fairs  and  other  contests  conducted  by  this  depart- 
ment. This  plan  will  greatly  facilitate  the  w^ork  of 
both  departments  and  avoid  unnecessary  duplica- 
ation.) 

4.  Accompanied  County  Superintendent  of  Schools  in 
Benton  County  to  all  schools  of  the  county,  organ- 
izing clubs  and  teaching  use  of  by-products  by 
actual  demonstrations  to  pupils  and  their  parents. 
Arrangements  were  made  for  local  leaders  to  follow 
up  this  work. 

5.  Issued  bulletin  on  ‘‘How  to  Organize  a Club  and 
Keep  up  Interest.”  Plan  and  significance  of  work 
also  presented  to  numerous  Commercial  Clubs,  Agri- 
cultural leaders  and  Educators  and  the  great  pos- 
sibilities of  agricultural  club  work  in  their  re- 
spective communities  pointed  out. 

6.  Secured  exhibit  material  for  active  organization 
work,  beginning  first  of  year,  in  response  to  many 
inquiries  from  granges.  County  Superintendents, 
teachers  and  farmers  in  all  parts  of  the  state. 

7.  Careful  study  made  of  industries  of  state  geo- 
graphically. 

8.  Study  and  survey  of  needs  of  people  commercially 
and  economically. 

1.  Purpose : 

a.  To  organize  those  industrial  agricultural 
clubs  of  greatest  ultimate  value  to  the  state 
and  productive  of  most  immediate  returns. 

b.  To  start  only  those  home  interest  enterprises 
that  will  continue  and  improve  farm  life  and 
home  conditions. 


32 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


Plans  for  Future  in  Club  Work — 

1.  As  rapidly  as  the  time  will  permit  it  is  planned  to 
extend  the  benefits  of  club  enrollment  and  club  instruction 
to  every  community  in  counties  employing  agriculturists  and 
to  offer  these  advantages  to  every  boy  or  girl  in  both  coun- 
try and  city. 

2.  To  extend  the  work  in  home  economic  lines  to  girls 
as  soon  as  means  are  provided  to  employ  a competent  woman 
assistant. 

3.  The  publication  of  bulletins  giving  instructions  in 
all  activities  promise  results  of  value. 

PUBLICATIONS 

During  the  year  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  pub- 
lished two  bulletins:  One  entitled  “How  to  Organize  a 
Club  and  Keep  up  Interest,”  by  T.  J.  Newbill,  State  Leader 
of  Boys’  and  Girls’  Club  Work;  and  the  other  a book  list 
entitled  “Some  Reference  Works  in  Agriculture.” 

NEEDS 

The  State  Legislature  in  creating  the  Bureau  of  Farm 
Development  affiliated  it  with  the  Experiment  Station.  While 
the  correlation  of  these  two  important  arms  of  the  agricul- 
tural work  was  a wise  provision,  the  legislators  entirely 
overlooked  the  fact  that  the  Director  of  the  Experiment 
Station  could  not  supervise  the  work  as  contemplated  in 
the  law  without  neglecting  his  duties  as  Director  of  the  Sta- 
tion. No  provision  was  made  for  any  funds  to  be  used  in 
the  paj^ment  of  overhead  administrative  expenses  in  the 
Bureau.  Fortunately,  the  State  College  and  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture  came  to  the  assistance  of 
the  Bureau  with  the  necessary  funds  to  tide  it  over  this 
difficulty. 

A specialist,  who  was  made  Vice  Director  of  the  Bu- 
reau, was  employed  to  have  immediate  supervision  of  the 
work  of  the  county  men.  Funds  were  also  provided  for 
the  employment  of  a leader  in  boys’  and  girls’  club  work, 
a farm  management  demonstrator  and  demonstrators  in 
other  lines, — in  all  entailing  a rather  heavy  expense,  in 
order  to  place  the  Bureau  on  its  feet  and  make  it  an  effi- 
cient State  Department. 

In  addition  to  the  above  mentioned  administrative  ex- 
penses there  has  been  entailed  a good  deal  of  expense  in 
connection  with  the  Director’s  office;  such  as  traveling  ex- 
penses, stenographic  work,  postage,  stationery,  etc.,  in  all 
amounting  probably  to  $500  per  year.  These  overhead  ex- 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


33 


penses,  of  course,  were  something  unforeseen  in  connection 
with  the  college  maintenance  at  the  time  its  financial  sup- 
port was  arranged  for  under  the  mill  tax. 

It  is,  of  course,  necessary  that  the  Bureau  be  closely 
affiliated  with  the  Experiment  Station  in  order  to  give  it 
the  benefits  of  the  agricultural  information  obtained  therein. 
The  two  organizations  are  complimentary  arms  of  one  great 
field  of  industrial  service,  the  Experiment  Station  being  the 
source  of  information,  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  the 
agency  for  its  distribution.  Provision  should,  therefore,  be 
made  from  the  General  Fund  of  the  state  for  financing  the 
overhead  expenses  of  the  Bureau.  This  can  most  effectively 
be  accomplished  by  duplicating  the  funds  required  in  the 
National  Smith-Lever  Bill,  recently  enacted  by  the  Federal 
Congress.  The  work  of  the  Bureau  is  exactly  the  type  con- 
templated in  this  National  measure. 

There  is  greatly  needed  in  the  proper  development  of 
the  work  of  the  Bureau  a woman  assistant  in  the  club  work 
who  will  work  exclusively  with  the  girls.  There  also  will 
be  needed  as  new  counties  join  the  Bureau,  assistant  demon- 
strators and  there  is  need  of  several  part-time  demonstrators 
for  work  with  the  boys  and  girls  during  the  summer  vaca- 
tion time  when  it  will  not  be  possible  for  the  club  leader  to 
give  personal  attention  to  the  increased  activities  of  the 
clubs  during  the  growing  season. 

On  account  of  the  necessity  of  sending  out  large  quan- 
tities of  printed  matter  in  the  form  of  instructions  to  various 
members  of  the  staff  and  those  co-operating  with  them, 
there  is  need  for  a considerable  expenditure  of  funds  in  the 
printing  of  bulletins,  circulars,  etc. 

OUTLOOK 

Washington  is  one  of  the  newest  states  of  the  Union 
and  one  whose  agricultural  development  has  barely  com- 
menced. Its  possibilities  of  development  are  second  to  no 
other  state  in  the  Union.  Vast  tracts  of  raw  land  possible 
of  clearing  or  irrigation,  vast  tracts  of  other  land  now 
under  cultivation  of  a type  which  produce  but  inadequate 
returns  will  yield  enormous  quantities  of  food  products  once 
the  proper  agricultural  methods  are  applied.  That,  with 
the  extension  of  modern  agricultural  methods,  it  will  be 
possible  to  increase  the  productivity  of  the  state  100  per 
cent  within  the  next  decade,  I believe,  a conservative  esti- 
mate. In  this  development  there  are  no  agencies  of  greater 
value  than  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  and  the  Ex- 
periment Station. 


34 


BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


APPENDIX 


CHAPTER  18,  SESSION  LAWS  1913 
(H.  B.  No.  28) 

BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 

AN  ACT  CREATING  THE  BUREAU  OF  FARM  DEVELOPMENT  OF 
THE  STATE  OF  M^ASHINGTON,  PROVIDING  FOR  THE  AP- 
POINTMENT AND  MAINTENANCE  OP  AGRICULTURAL  EX- 
PERTS THEREUNDER,  AND  EMPOWERING  THE  BOARDS 
OP  THE  COUNTY  COMMISSIONERS  OP  THE  SEVERAL 
COUNTIES  OF  THE  STATE  OP  WASHINGTON  TO  APPRO- 
PRIATE, AND  SET  ASIDE  MONEYS  THEREFOR,  AND  DE- 
CLARING AN  EMERGENCY. 

Be  it  Enacted  by  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  Washington : 

Section  1.  There  is  hereby  created  the  Bureau  of  Farm 
Development  of  the  State  of  Washington,  which  shall  con- 
sist of  the  Director  of  the  Experiment  Station  of  the  State 
College  of  Washington,  who  shall  be  director  thereof,  and  of 
the  Boards  of  County  Commissioners  of  all  counties  of  the 
State  of  Washington  desiring  to  participate  therein.  The 
officers  and  members  of  such  Bureau  of  Farm  Development 
shall  serve  without  salary,  and  the  expenses  incident  to  the 
operation  of  said  Bureau  of  Farm  Development  shall  be  borne 
by  the  county  for  which  the  same  shall  be  incurred. 

Sec.  2.  The  Board  of  County  Commissioners  of  any 
county  may  by  request  in  writing  apply  to  the  Director  of 
the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development,  who  shall  appoint  and 
assign  to  such  county  a competent  agricultural  expert : Pro- 
vided, That  the  Board  of  County  Comoiissioners  applying 
therefor  shall  always  have  the  right  to  reject  any  appoint- 
ment, to  determine  the  period  during  which  such  expert 
shall  be  employed,  and  to  fix  the  compensation  of  such  ex- 
pert, not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars  ($200.00)  per 
month,  and  in  their  discretion  necessary  traveling  expenses. 

Sec.  3.  Such  expert  shall  during  the  period  of  his  em- 
ployment reside  and  maintain  an  office  within  the  county 
for  which  he  is  appointed,  and,  with  the  consent  of  the 
Board  of  County  Commissioners  of  such  county  he  may 
employ  such  assistance  as  may  be  required  and  purchase  such 
books,  equipment,  apparatus,  and  material  as  may  be  re- 
quired, which  books,  equipment,  apparatus,  and  material 
shall  become  and  remain  the  property  of  the  county:  Pro- 
vided, That  the  expenses  which  may  be  incurred  by  the 


FIRST  ANNUAL  REPORT 


35 


•authority  of  this  section  shall  never  exceed  the  sum  of 
twelve  hundred  dollars  during  any  calendar  year. 

Sec.  4.  Such  experts  shall  give  individual  instruction 
•and  conduct  experimental  work  with  the  object  of  improving 
the  agricultural  methods  and  conditions  of  their  counties, 
and  shall  perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  required, 
subject  to  the  general  supervision  and  control  of  the  Director 
of  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development : Provided,  That  the 
Boards  of  County  Commissioners  shall  always  have  the  right 
to  co-operate  with  the  Department  of  Agriculture  of  the 
United  States  in  the  appointment,  maintenance,  and  work 
of  such  experts ; and  in  such  event,  the  Director  of  the 
Bureau  of  Farm  Development  shall  appoint  for  the  county 
exercising  the  privilege  herein  granted  such  person  as  said 
Department  of  Agriculture  may  recommend,  and  said  expert 
shall  then  be  subject  to  the  general  supervision  and  control 
of  said  Department  of  Agriculture,  and  said  Department  of 
Agriculture  shall  defray  such  portion  as  may  be  agreed  upon 
of  the  salary,  office  expenses,  and  other  expenses  incurred  by 
such  expert. 

Sec.  5.  For  the  purpose  of  fully  and  effectively  carry- 
ing out  the  object  and  provisions  of  this  act,  the  Board  of 
County  Commissioners  participating  herein  of  the  several 
counties  of  the  State  of  Washington  are  hereby  empowered 
to  levy,  appropriate,  and  set  aside  such  sum  of  money  as 
may  be  necessar}^  not  exceeding  three  thousand  and  six 
hundred  dollars  for  any  calendar  year;  and  in  the  event  of 
a failure  from  any  cause  to  levy  and  appropriate  such  fund, 
and  until  the  next  annual  tax  levy,  said  Boards  of  County 
Commissioners  are  empowered  to  set  aside  such  fund  from 
the  county  current  expense  fund. 

Sec.  6.  This  act  is  necessary  for  the  immediate  preserva- 
tion of  the  public  peace,  health  and  safety,  and  shall  take 
effect  immediately. 

Passed  the  House  January  29,  1913. 

Passed  the  Senate  February  19,  1913. 

Approved  by  the  Governor  Februar}^  28,  1913. 


36 


BUREAU  OR  FARM  DEVELOPMENT 


FINANCIAL  STATEMENT 


Smith- 

RECEIPTS  County  State  Lever 
From  various 

funds  $15,057.95  $3,020.08  $3,278.11 

EXPENDITURES 

Salaries  $ 8,932.00  $1,499.97  $2,089.19 

Labor  2.00  .50 

Freight  and  ex- 
press   5.45  

Office  and  travel- 
ing expenses  of 
county  agricul- 
turists   6,125.95  

Office  furniture  and 

fixtures  108.17  223.90 

Books  ■ 190.00  

Traveling  expenses 

(supervision)  980.48  882.72 

Stationery  and 

printing  182.40  23.95 

Postage,  telephone, 

and  telegraph  49.92  28.50 

Tools  and  appli- 
ances   23.05 

Miscellaneous  sup- 
plies   1.69  6.30 

Totals  $15,057.95  $3,020.08  $3,278.11 


U.  S.  D.  A.  Total 

$4,513.65  $25,869.79 

$4,513.65  $17,034.81 

2.50 

5.45 


6,125.95 

332.07 

190.00 

1,863.20 

206.S5 

78.42 

23.05 

7.99 

$4,513.65  $25,869.79 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


O 

DIVISION  OF  FARM  CROPS 


o- 


WASHINGTON  WHEATS 

by 

E.  G.  SCHAFER,  Agronomist 
and 

E.  F.  GAINES,  Acting  Cerealist 


■o 


BULLETIN  No.  121 
February,  1915 


0 


All  flulletiiis  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  Slate  on  a[>|)Ii> 
cation  to  Director 


BOARD  OP  CONTROL 


James  C.  Cunningham,  President Spokane 

R.  C.  McCroskey,  Vice  President Garfielti 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  College).  Secretary  Ex-Officio.  . Pullma» 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

W.  A.  Ritz -....Walla  Walla 

E.  T.  Coman ^ Spokane 


EXPERIMENT  STATION  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff.  Ph.  D 

Elton  Fulmer,  M,  A 

O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M 

A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D 

O.  M.  Morris,  B.  S 

Geo.  Severance,  B.  S 

C.  C.  Thom.  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S 

Geo.  A.  Olson.  B.  S.  A..  M.  S 
W.  T.  Shaw,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S. . . 

B.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S 

Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D 

C.  A.  Magoon,  M.  A 

J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S 

M.  A.  Yothers,  B.  S 

Henry  F.  Holtz,  B.  S 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  F.  Monroe,  B.  S.  A 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S 

H.  M.  Woolman 

R.  L.  Buchanan,  B.  S 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. . . .Assistant  Animal  Husbandman 

Assistant  In  Horticulture 

Assistant  Plant  Patholoc-lst 

Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 

Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 

Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 


WaShingfton  Wheats 

By  E.  G.  SCHAFER,  Agronomist,  and  E.  F.  GAINES,  Acting  CerealisI 


A study  of  Washington  wheats  shows  the  presence  of  many  vari- 
eties. The  large  number  has  added  confusion  to  commercial  grading 
and  has  made  the  situation  of  wheat  improvement  difficult.  Fre- 
quent mixtures  in  commercial  lots  of  wheat  have  not  encouraged 
stringent  regulations  in  wheat  inspection  and  have  resulted  in  lower 
market  values.  The  numerous  varieties  differ  in  yield  and  quality 
and  where  varieties  of  outstanding  merit  have  not  been  developed, 
inferior  varieties  are  often  used. 

A few  of  the  more  prominent  varieties  are  described  in  the  follow- 
ing pages.  This  and  other  information  recorded  has  been  derived 
from  studies  conducted  in  the  field  plots,  nursery  and  laboratory. 

The  wide  climatic  adaptation  of  wheat  makes  possible  its  general 
distribution  in  the  various  agricultural  districts  in  Washington. 
Even  though  there  is  wide  range  in  altitude,  temperature,  rainfall 
and  soil  conditions,  wheat  is  extensively  grown  and  not  limited  to 
one  set  of  conditions.  Through  an  endeavor  to  obtain  suitable  vari- 
eties for  the  various  localities,  a large  number  have  been  introduced. 

No  one  variety  does  equally  well  in  all  places.  Bluestem  and 
Jones  Fife,  which  are  the  leading  varieties  in  the  drier  wheat  sec- 
tions, give  way  to  Red  Russian,  Forty  Fold,  the  Clubs  and  others  in 
the  districts  of  more  rainfall.  Because  of  the  marked  variations  in 
climatic  conditions  within  short  distances,  different  varieties  have 
been  brought  into  nearby  districts.  A further  distribution  of  these 
varieties  has  caused  them  to  overlap,  with  the  result  that  several 
varieties  may  be  found  growing  in  the  same  locality.  The  situation 
would  be  less  serious  if  these  varieties  could  be  kept  pure.  Mixing 
of  varieties  occurs  through  threshing  and  further  mixing  may  occur 
through  volunteering  where  one  variety  follows  another  on  the  same 
farm.  When  it  becomes  fully  proved  that  one  variety  is  clearly 
superior,  it  should  be  grown  to  the  exclusion  of  the  others.  No  one 
wheat  has  proved  clearly  superior  in  all  localities. 

Acknowledgment  is  made  of  the  work  of  Alex  Carlyle,  cerealist  of  the 
Station  during  1911  and  1912.  The  Chemistry  Division  of  the  Experiment 
Station  made  the  flour,  gluten  and  nitrogen  determinations  reported. 


4 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


NECESSITY  OF  COMPARATIVE  FIELD  EXPERIMENTS  IN 
DETERMINING  THE  MOST  PROFITABLE  VARIETIES 

Different  varieties  of  wheat  show  variation  in  shape  and  size  of 
head;  in  shape,  size  and  color  of  grain;  and  in  many  otlier  })arts. 
There  is  often  just  as  great  variation  between  different  varieties 
growni  under  uniform  conditions,  in  regard  to  yield  per  acre  and  per 
cent  and  strength  of  flour  produced.  It  is  not  difficult  to  detect  dif- 
ferences of  wide  variation  in  yield,  but  it  is  impossible  l)y  general 
observation  to  detect  the  smaller  differences  of  one  to  five  bushels 
per  acre.  AVith  variations  that  occur  in  climatic  conditions  from 
.year  to  year,  the  same  variety  does  not  always  give  the  highest  yield, 
and  the  selection  of  the  best  variety  is  difficult  where  se\’eral  are- 
being  considered.  The  selection  of  a vraiety  is  often  made  by  prac- 
tical wheat  growei's  ])y  e()m[)ariiig  the  yield  of  one  variety  one  year 
with  the  yield  of  anotlier  variety  another  year  when  the  v'eather  1 
conditions  ai'e  (init('  different.  To  ( onipare  the  merits  of  diffei-ent  i 
varieties  they  must  be  grown  in  plots  side  by  side.  The  size  of  the 
plots  must  be  accurately  determined  and  the  yield  of  the  plots  ob-| 
tained.  Comparative  production  for  several  years  is  necessary  before  i 
reliable  conclusions  (aiii  be  drawn.  (Quality  must  b(‘  taken  inio  con-  ! 
sideratioji  as  weW  as  yield.  In  the  abseiK-e  of  properly  conducted  ex- i 
perimental  tests  nuiiKn-ous  ^’arieties  ainl  mixtures  woidd  continue  to  I 
exist.  { 

DESCRIPTION  OF  WHEAT  VARIETIES  | 

Wheats  of  great  dissimilarity  have  been  grown  wdth  varying  de- j 
grees  of  success  in  Washington.  It  will  be  observed  from  a study  of  ; 
Table  I that  most  of  the  Washington  wheats  are  beardless.  In  gen-  ; 
eral  the  club  wdieats  have  shorter  and  stiffer  steins  than  the  long  f 
headed  wheats.  There  are  more  winter  varieties  than  spring  vari- 
eties. About  one-third  of  those  d(‘scribed  live  through  the  winter  as  | 
winter  wheats,  yet  Ixdiave  lik(‘  spring  wheats  Avhen  seeded  in  the  i 
spring.  Ten  of  the  s('vent(‘en  ^'arie1ies  desi-ribed  have  white  grain.  * 

Bluestem  of  the  Pacific  Coast  states  has  smooth  or  glabrous  chaff' | 
and  white  grain.  It  is  very  uidike.  the  velvet  chaff,  red  grain  Blue-  , 
stem  of  the  states  east  of  the  Rockies.  The  Washington  Bluestem  is  | 
probably  of  Australian  origin.  It  is  extensively  grown  in  the  drier  | 
sections  as  a spring  wheat,  bnl  is  ocamsionally  fall  seeded  where  the  j 
wintei's  are  mild.  Its  [)opnlai-ily  in  the  dry  belt  is  due  to  its  drouth  ’ 
Tesistanc(‘,  heavy  yiidding  capacity,  iion-sliattering  character  and  : 


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C Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 

high  milling  value.  It  tends  to  lodge  and  is  of  poorer  quality  when 
grown  in  the  moister  portions  of  the  wheat  belt. 

Red  Russian  is  the  most  extensively  produced  winter  wheat  in  the 
Palouse  countr5\  It  grows  vigorously,  matures  late  and  responds 
well  to  favorable  soil  and  moisture  conditions,  usually  producing 
heavy  yields.  It  has  a stiff  straw,  stands  well,  produces  an  abund- 
ance of  foliage  and  chokes  out  weeds  better  than  any  other  wheat. 
It  is  soft  and  rather  inferior  in  quality’.  Its  late  maturing  habit 
makes  it  poorly  adapted  to  the  dry  belt. 

Hybrid  143  was  originated  by  Prof.  VV.  J.  Spillman  at  the  Wash- 
ington State  Experiment  Station  and  first  distributed  in  1907.  It  is 
•grown  to  a limited  extent  throughout  the  state  and  it  is  typical  of  the 
club  wheats  in  shape  and  compactness  of  head.  It  holds  the  grain 
well,  has  a stiff  straw  and  it  is  one  of  the  highest  yielding  wheats 
tested  at  the  Agricultural  Experiment  Station.  It  is  a hybrid  pro- 
duced by  crossing  White  Track  and  Little  Club.  It  may  be  either 
spring  or  fall  seeded. 

Jones  Winter  Fife  is  the  principal  winter  wheat  in  the  drier  sec- 
tions and  probably  withstands  adverse  conditions  encountered  there 
better  than  any  other  winter  wheat.  Its  drouth  resistance  and  heavy 
yielding  ability  are  its  strongest  points.  Its  greatest  weakness  is  its 
tendency  to  shatter  badly.  It  gives  way  to  the  spring  Bluestem 
where  it  is  not  able  to  come  through  the  winter  successfully. 

Turkey  Red  is  grown  in  limited  amounts  as  a winter  wheat  in  sec- 
tions where  Bluestem  and  Jones  Winter  Fife  are  grown  extensively. 
Its  great  drouth  resistance  and  heavy  yielding  ability  would  seem 
to  justify  its  being  more  widely  grown.  An  objectionable  feature  is 
the  presence  of  beards.  It  is  the  only  bearded  winter  wheat  grown 
commercially  in  Washington.  When  grown  under  the  more  favor- 
able conditions  of  soil  and  moisture  it  lodges  badly.  It  is  a hard 
wheat  of  good  quality. 

Winter  Bluestem  is  a hybrid  wheat  produced  by  crossing  Turkey 
and  Bluestem.  It  bears  the  hardy  winter  characteristics  of  Turkey 
and  the  head  and  kernel  characters  of  Bluestem.  It  stands  well  even 
under  the  more  favorable  soil  and  moisture  conditions.  It  is  a hardy 
winter  variety,  but  is  similar  to  Bluestem  in  many  other  respects.  It 
grades  commercially  a.s  Bluestem.  It  is  a wheat  of  good  quality. 

Forty  Fold  has  been  a popular  wheat  in  the  Palouse  country  but 
lis  grown  less  than  formerly  because  of  its  marked  tendency  to  shat- 


Fig.  1.  Three  varieties  of  wheat  of  the  semi-arid  districts  of  Wash- 
ington: 1.  Joaes  Winter  Fife.  2.  Turkey  Red.  3,  Pacific  Coast 

Slues  tem. 


8 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


ter.  It  is  commonly  called  Gold  ('oin  in  some  sections.  The  grain  is 
very  similar  to  plump  Hluestem  in  appearance,  hut  it  usually  sells  for 
less  on  the  commercial  market.  It  is  the  earliest  variety  grown  in  the 
Palouse  country. 

Marquis  is  an  early  maturing  red  spring  wheat  which  has  h(‘en  in- 
troduced recently  from  Canada.  It  may  he  grown  in  the  place  of 
Bluestem  where  an  early  maturing  wheat  is  desirable.  It  does  not 
shatter  easily  and  stands  well.  It  has  a short,  plump,  and  very  hard 
kernel  and  is  of  good  quality. 

Triplet  is  one  of  the  newer  hybrids  that  has  shown  u])  well  in  the 
nursery.  It  will  not  he  offered  for  distribution  unless  it  continues 
to  show  special  merit  during  the  next  two  years  in  the  field  t*  sts.  It 
is  a composite  hybrid,  -lones  Winter  Fife.  Little  (dub  ajid  Turkey 
heiiig  used  in  the  parentage. 

Hybrid  128  is  a cross  between  dones  Winter  Fife  and  Little  Club.  ] 
It  Avas  originated  in  1899  by  Prof.  W.  J.  Spillman.  After  being  s(dect'  | 
ed  and  tested  for  eight  years  it  was  distributed  to  ranelno's  for 
further  testing.  The  standing  grain  looks  mucdi  the  sanie  as  llyj)rid! 
148.  It  has  a short  compact  head,  stiff  straAV  and  does  not  .shatter,  i 
The  kernel  is  considerably  longer  than  Hybrid  148  and  resembles  i 
Little  Club.  This  Avheat  yields  well  and  is  of  high  ([uality  and  grades  ■ 
commercially  as  Club.  ! 

Little  Club  Avas  one  of  the  first  club  wluaits  to  be  grown  extensively  ( 

. . i 

in  Washington.  It  has  a stiff  straAV,  typi('al  (did)  head.  Avhiti^  gram  t 
and  does  not  shatter  easily.  It  has  lieen  used  as  one  of  the  parents  I 
in  the  ])i‘oduction  of  several  of  the  hybrid  Avheats,  some  i»f  whi(di  are  i 
rated  more  highly  than  Little  ('lub  itself.  It  is  less  extcnsividy  groAvn 
than  formerly  because  of  tlie  introduction  of  more  snitabb^  variidies. 

Hybrids  123  and  108  Avere  distributed  from  tlie  Fx])(‘riment  Station 
in  1997.  Tiicy  both  liave  the  club  ty[)e  (d'  Inaul  and  i*t'd  grain.  The 
earliei'  trial  tests  indi(‘ated  that  they  Avere  both  good  yitdders.  They 
are  no  longiu*  considm-i'd  desirable  Avheats  beeause  of  their  poor  mill- 
ing value.  ddii\v  Avere  both  produced  by  erossing  domes  Winter  Fife 
and  Lit t le  ( lub. 

Hybrids  150  and  63  Avere  distributed  from  the  Fxqx-riment  Slatiou 
in  1997.  ddn'y  both  lia\’(‘  the  (dub  1\ qie  of  head  and  white  grain,  ddiey 
have  lieen  groAvn  mori'  or  less  extensively  in  tin*  drier  Avlieat  sections 
of  the  state  and  Hybrid  (>8  is  rapidly  inenaising  in  popularity  as  a 
Avintei*  vari(d.y.  It  is  a good  yielder  iimh'r  eondijions  of  extreme- 


Fig.  IT.  Tliree  varieties  of  wlieat  extensively  srown  in  tlie  more 
liumid  sections  of  Washington:  4.  Red  Russian.  5.  Hybrid  143. 

Ti.  Forty  Fold,  Hybrid  19, s is  almost  identical  with  Hybrid  143  in  the 
appearance  of  the  head. 


• ^ 

f 


10 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


drouth  and  grades  well  on  the  market.  Both  Hybrid  150  and  Hybrid 
63  were  produced  by  crossing  Turkey  Red  and  Little  Club. 

Red  Allen,  White  Elliot,  Sonora  and  Jenkins  Club  are  spring  vari- 
eties and  have  all  been  grown  to  a limited  extent  within  the  state. 
Less  area  is  devoted  to  their  production  now  than  formerly.  None 
of  them,  thus  far,  have  proved  of  sufficient  merit  to  warrant  their 
general  introduction. 

VARIETY  TESTS  OF  WHEAT  IN  FIELD  AND  NURSERY  AT 

PULLMAN 

The  fields  devoted  to  variety  testing  at  Pullman  are  a part  of  the 
400-acre  farm  of  the  Experiment  Station.  The  main  tests  are  con- 
ducted in  the  larger  fields  under  ordinary  field  conditions.  In  addi- 
tion to  this  a nursery  field  is  maintained  for  testing  a large  number 
of  varieties  in  smaller  plots. 

Much  care  is  exercised  in  making  the  field  variety  tests.  A field 
of  uniform  soil  conditions  and  uniform  previous  cropping  is  selected 
for  the  work.  The  land  is  all  plowed  at  the  same  time  and  receives 
the  same  preparation.  The  plots  for  the  different  varieties  to  be 
tested  are  laid  off  in  long  strips  of  uniform  size  and  shape  and  are 
side  by  side.  The  varieties  are  all  seeded  the  same  day  and  with  the 
same  drill.  The  plots  are  labeled  with  a stake  showing  the  name  of 
the  variety,  and  a record  is  also  made  in  the  field  record  book.  When 
the  wheat  is  ripe  each  plot  is  harvested  with  a self-binder,  thrashed 
and  weighed  separately.  In  order  to  overcome  errors  that  might 
occur  through  lack  of  uniformity  of  conditions  the  variety  test  is 
repeated  or  duplicated  the  same  year  in  another  group  of  plots.  The 
second  group  or  series  of  plots  receives  the  same  care  and  attention 
as  the  ones  just  described.  The  average  yield  of  any  one  variety  in 
the  two  series  of  plots  is  used  in  making  the  comparison  of  the  dif- 
ferent varieties. 

A nursery  field  is  used  in  making  preliminary  tests  and  propagat- 
ing new  varieties.  It  is  evident  that  the  number  of  varieties  tested 
under  field  conditions  must  be  limited  for  lack  of  space.  For  this 
reason,  preliminary  tests  are  made  in  a smaller  field.  These  tests  are 
made  in  single  rod  rows,  but  repeated  twice.  The  average  yield  of 
the  three  rows  forms  a basis  for  comparison.  If  a new  variety  does 
not  show  up  well  in  the  preliminary  tests  it  is  not  considered  valuable 
and  is  not  taken  to  the  field.  The  varieties  that  show  up  well  in  the 
nursery  in  comparison  with  the  standard  varieties,  which  are  also 


Washington  Wheats 


11 


grown  there,  are  placed  in  the  field  tests  the  next  year,  and  also 
continued  in  the  nursery.  The  results  from  both  the  field  ana 
nursery  are  accessible  in  making  comparative  variety  studies. 

Field  Test  of  Winter  Wheat 
Table  II — Yield  of  Wheat  Varieties 

(Field  Test) 


1911 

1912 

1914 

Average 

Wash. 

Bushels 

Bushels 

Bushels 

Bushels 

Variety 

No. 

per  acre 

per  acre 

per  acre 

per  acre 

Hybrid  128 

592 

48.6 

38.1 

44.7 

43.8 

Hybrid  143 

590 

46.1 

34.9 

43.3 

41.4 

Red  Russian 

270 

42.3 

41.5 

42.7 

42.2 

Hybrid  123 

593 

45.1 

37.0 

41.9 

41.3 

Forty  Fold 

351 

36.8 

36.5 

38.7 

37.3 

Jones  Winter  Fife 

371 

45.6 

38.2 

37.8 

40.5 

Little  Club 

500 

42.2 

41.0 

43.7 

42.3 

Hybrid  108 

591 

30.3 

39.9 

35.1 

Turkey  Red 

326 

41.6 

Winter  Bluestem 

536 

49.9 

39.8 

41.1 

43.6 

Triplet 

597 

53.9 

Hybrid  60 

594 

44.3 

4’2’.2 

41.2 

4 2. 6 

Hybrid  150 

595 

40.3 

Table  II  shows  the  average  yield  per  acre  of  a number  of  varieties 
for  a period  of  three  years.  It  will  be  seen  from  the  table  that  there 
is  considerable  uniformity  in  yield  per  acre  of  the  varieties  tested. 
Forty  Fold  and  Hybrid  108,  however,  give  distinctly  lower,  yields 
than  the  others.  Table  II  also  shows  that  a single  year's  test  may 
give  results  contrary  to  the  results  of  a term  of  years.  The  yield  for 
1911  shows  Jones  Winter  Fife  to  be  ahead  of  Red  Russian  by  3.3 
bushels  per  acre,  but  the  average  for  the  three  years  shows  Red  Rus- 
sian to  be  in  the  lead  by  1.7  bushels  per  acre.  No  data  are  given  for 
191.3  as  the  field  tests  were  not  conducted  for  that  year. 

Table  III — Comparative  Yield  of  Wheat  Varieties  With  the 
Average  of  All  Varieties  (41.6  Bu.)  Taken  as  100 


(Field  Test) 


Variety 

W’ash. 

No. 

1911 

1912 

1914 

Average 

Hybrid  128 

592 

116 

91 

107 

105 

Hybrid  143 

59  0 

no 

83 

104 

99 

Red  Russian 

270 

101 

99 

102 

101 

Hybrid  123 

593 

108 

88 

100 

99 

Forty  Fold 

351 

88 

87 

93 

89 

Jones  Winter  Fife 

371 

109 

91 

90 

97 

Little  Club 

500 

101 

98 

105 

101 

Hybrid  108 

591 

72 

95 

84 

Turkey  Red 

326 

100 

Winter  Bluestem 

536 

119 

95 

98 

104 

Triplet 

597 

129 

Hybrid  60 

594 

106 

101 

100 

102 

Hybrid  150 

59  5 

96 

12 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


In  Table  111  the  yields  are  reduced  to  a comparative  basis  with  the 
average  of  all  varieties  grown  for  three  years  taken  as  100. 

Table  IV — Comparative  Yield  of  Wheat  Varieties  With  the 
Average  of  All  Varieties  (2287  gms.)  Taken  as  100 

(Nursery  Test) 

Wash. 


Variety 

No. 

1911 

1912 

1914 

Average 

Hybrid  12  8 

592 

117 

114 

90 

107 

Hybrid  143 

590 

142 

83 

74 

100 

Red  Russian 

270 

117 

103 

70 

97 

Hybrid  123 

593 

118 

87 

82 

96 

Forty  Fold 

351 

158 

78 

65 

100 

.Tones  Winter  Fife 

371 

143 

66 

5 9 

87 

Little  Club 

50  0 

112 

66 

7 5 

84 

Hybrid  108 

591 

107 

68 

69 

81 

Turkey  Red 

326 

153 

84 

1 19 

Winter  Bluestem 

53  6 

74 

Triplet 

597 

192 

110 

87 

130 

Nursery  Test  of  Winter  Wheat 

Table  TV  sIioavs  the  yield  of  varieties  of  wheat  grown  in  the  nursery 
reduced  to  a comparative  basis.  The  average  of  all  varieties  is  used 
as  a standard  and  is  given  a ^'alue  of  100.  As  stated  in  another  placep 
the  nursery  is  used  for  preliminary  testing  and  the  yields  are  not' 
given  in  bushels  per  acre. 


Table  V — Results  From  Field  and  Nursery  Averaged 


(Taken  From 

Tables  111  and 

IV) 

Variety 

Field 

Nursery 

Average 

Rank  ' 

Hybrid  128 

1 05 

107 

106 

1 1 

Hybrid  143 

99 

100 

99.5 

2 ( 

Red  Russian 

101 

9 7 

99 

3 , 

Hybrid  123 

99 

96 

9 7.5 

4 t 

Forty  Fold 

89 

100 

94.5 

5 i 

.Jones  Winter 

Fife  97 

89 

93 

6 . 

T^ittle  Club 

101 

84 

92.5 

7 

Hybrid  108 

'84 

81 

82.5 

8 

Table  V showf- 

; a comparison 

between  the  residts  obtained  in  the 

field  and  nursery 

. In  general  it  shows  that  the 

i varieties  that  ranked 

liigli  in  the  field 

also  ranked  hi; 

gh  in  the  nursery.  It 

will  be  noted 

that  Hybrid  128  ranks  first  in  both  places  and  tliat  Hyl 

)rid  lOS  ranks 

last  in  l)oth  plat-es.  The  average 

: of  the  results 

of  tli('  f 

ield  and  iiiu’s- 

ery  tests  is  llu'  most  trustwoidhy  value  that  (oin  ])e  g'i\'(Mi  each  of 


tlies(‘  ^'a^•iti(^s.  Sonu'  \ ai‘i(0i(‘s  were  test('d  only  in  lh(‘  i'icdd  oi*  only 
in  tlie  nnrsei*y  and  for  tliat  reason  ari^  not  ineluded  in  Tabl(‘  \^. 

Spring  Wheats 

Table  ^"l  gives  the  la'snlts  of  two  yeai*s  test  in  tlie  nui’sery,  too 
short  a time  to  establish  the  comparative  \aliie  of  varieties. 


Washington  Wheats 


13 


Table  VI — Comparative  Vield  of  Spring  Wheat  Varieties  With 
the  Average  of  All  Varieties  Taken  as  100 

(Nursery  Test) 


Variety 

Wash.  No. 

1913 

1914 

Average 

Bluestem 

362 

95.5 

115.0 

105.2 

Hybrid  143  . 

590 

96.6 

92.5 

94.5 

Little  Club 

500 

9 5.2 

93.0 

94.1 

Marquis 

576 

119.6 

100.6 

1 10.1 

Red  Chaff 

421 

11  3.8 

96.2 

105.0 

Early  Bark 

618 

81.5 

In  1913  Marquis 

, which  ripens 

very  early,  e^ 

reaped  the 

hot  winds 

and  ranked  first. 

In  1914  in  th 

e absence  of 

early  hot 

Avinds  the 

later  maturing  llluestem  took  first  place. 

COMPARATIVE  QUALITY  OF  VARIETIES 

It  is  essential  to  have  a wheat  of  good  quality  or  high  milling  value 
just  as  it  is  to  have  one  that  produces  a satisfactory  yield  per  acre. 
The  term  quality  as  commonly  used  in  connection  with  wheat  refers 
to  utility  value,  but  has  an  uncertain  meaning.  It  is  unfortunate  that 
there  is  not  some  unit  available  by  which  quality  might  be  measured. 

The  properties  of  quality  have  been  considered  in  determining 
market  classifications  and  grades.  Grain  dealers  base  their  estimates 
of  value  on  such  physical  characteristics  as  color,  size  and  shape  of 
kernel,  and  weight  per  bushel.  They  classify  wheat  and  determine 
grades  largely  by  observation  of  these  characteristii's.  Often  a dif- 
ference of  five  to  ten  cents  per  bushel  is  paid  for  wheat  of  different 
classes,  or  even  different  lots  of  the  same  class.  The  difference  is  at 
least  partly  due  to  difference  in  quality.  The  rules  and  regulations 
governing  the  inspection  and  grading  of  grain  established  by  the 
Public  Service  (Commission  of  Washington  prescril)e  that.  ^‘Choice 
milling  wheat  must  be  sound,  dry,  plump,  of  good  color,  free  from 
smut,  clean  and  not  mixed.”  A general  classification  placing  Avheats 
into  several  classes,  and  as  mapy  as  four  grades  has  been  based  upon 
the  appearance  of  physical  characteristics.  Sufficient  accuracy,  how- 
ever, can  not  be  obtained  by  the  trained  individual  by  inspection  to 
make  it  possible  to  rate  differeiit  samples  of  wheat  according  to 
their  milling  value. 

Attempts  have  been  made  to  compare  the  quality  of  different 
wheats  by  determining  the  per  cent  of  flour  they  will  produce  and 
the  per  cent  of  dry  gluten,  wet  gluten,  and  nitrogen  they  contain. 
These  attributes  do  not  fully  account  for  quality  as  some  varieties 


14 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


may  contain  gluten  of  a higher  grade  than  others.  'However,  they 
all  may  be  considered  important  as  they  have  an  influence  on  the 
size,  texture,  and  value  of  the  loaf  of  bread  that  may  be  made  from 
the  flour. 


Table  VII — Analyses  of  Washington  Wheats  Grown 

on  Plots 

in  1914  Under  Uniform  Field  Conditions 

Wash. 

Pet. 

Pet.  Wet  Pet.  Dr: 

y Pet. 

Variety 

No. 

Flour 

Gluten 

Gluten 

Nitrogen 

Hybrid  128 

592 

78.42 

39.8 

16.2 

2.185 

Hybrid  143 

590 

79.59 

35.8 

13.0 

2.120 

Red  Russian 

270 

82.96 

25.1 

10.0 

1.785 

Hybrid  123 

593 

77.66 

33.5 

13.6 

1.955 

Forty  Fold 

351 

82.44 

34.6 

13.3 

2.015 

Jones  Winter  Fife 

371 

80.05 

27.0 

9.9 

1.850 

Little  Club 

500 

78.32 

28.0 

10. 0 

1.830 

Hybrid  108 

591 

76.94 

26.5 

9.7 

1.865 

Turkey  Red 

326 

78.34 

39.8 

14.3 

2.185 

Winter  Bluestem 

536 

80.75 

30.2 

10.0 

1.940 

Triplet 

597 

75.80 

32.8 

11.0 

1.950 

Hybrid  60 

594 

81.90 

29.3 

11.7 

1.615 

Hybrid  150 

595 

79.32 

22.0 

8.2 

1.725 

Bluestem* 

362 

81.97 

27.3 

10.0 

2.065 

Marquis* 

576 

73.65 

32.2 

14.2 

2.190 

Red  Chaff* 

421 

81.20 

28.9 

10.2 

2.040 

Little  Club* 

500 

79.02 

30.5 

11.1 

2.160 

Hybrid  143* 

590 

78.62 

30.0 

12.0 

1.990 

Average 
* Spring  grown 

79.3 

30.7 

11.6 

1.970 

Table  VII  gives  the 

per  cent  of  flour  produced,  per 

cent  of  wet 

gluten,  per  cent  of  dry  gluten,  and  per  cent  of  nitrogen  contained  in 
the  group  of  wheats  studied. 

Table  VIII — Comparative  Quality  Values  of 

Washington  Wheats 

Variety  Wash.  No. 

Flour 

Gluten 

Nitrogen 

Av.Qual. 

Hybrid  128 

592 

98.9 

134.6 

110.9 

114.8 

Hybrid  143 

590 

100.4 

114.3 

107.6 

107.8 

Red  Russian 

270 

104.5 

83.8 

90.6 

93.0 

Hybrid  123 

593 

97.9 

113.2 

99.2 

103.4 

Forty  Fold 

351 

103.9 

113.6 

102.3 

106.6 

Jones  Winter  Fife 

371 

100.1 

86.6 

93.9 

93.5 

Little  Club 

500 

98.8 

88.7 

92.8 

93.4 

Hybrid  108 

591 

97.0 

85.0 

94.7 

92.2 

Turkey  Red 

326  . 

98.8 

125.3 

110.9 

111.7 

Winter  Bluestem 

536 

101.8 

92.3 

98.5 

97.5 

Triplet 

597 

95.6 

100.8 

99.0 

98.5 

Hybrid  60 

594 

103.3 

98.1 

82.0 

94.5 

Hybrid  150 

595 

100.0 

. 71.0 

87.6 

86.2 

Bluestem* 

362 

103.4 

87.6 

104.8 

98.6 

Marquis* 

576 

92.9 

113.6 

111.2 

105.9 

Red  Chaff* 

421 

102.4 

91.0 

103.6 

99.0 

Little  Club* 

500 

99.6 

97.5 

109.6 

102.3 

Hybrid  143* 

* Spring  grown. 

590 

99.1 

100.6 

101.0 

100.2 

Washington  Wheats 


15 


Table  Vlll  gives  the  same  values  at  Table  Vll  but  in  another  form, 
and  a single  expression  for  the  value  of  each  variety.  Each  percent- 
age column  in  Table  VII  was  reduced  to  a comparative  basis  by  taking 
the  average  of  all  the  values  in  the  column  as  100  and  rating  each 
value  accordingly.  The  values  thus  obtained  from  the  wet  gluten  and 
dry  gluten  columns  were  merged  into  one  column  (gluten)  by  taking 
their  average.  The  final  column  is  the  average  of  the  three  columns, 
flour,  gluten,  and  nitrogen.  The  final  result  shown  in  this  table  is 
based  on  the  assumption  that  per  cent  of  flour  produced,  per  cent  of 
gluten,  and  per  cent  of  nitrogen  all  have  an  equal  share  in  determin- 
ing value  or  quality. 

RESULTS  OF  WHEAT  EXPERIMENTS  IN  DRY  BELT 

The  land  used  for  experimental  work  at  Ritzville  is  upland  sandy 
loam  and  is  representative  of  much  of  the  soil  in  the  Big  Bend 
country.  Experimental  tests  have  not  been  carried  on  at  this  point 
for  a sufficient  length  of  time  to  determine  the  wheats  of  greatest 
value.  There  is  no  one  variety  that  is  clearly  superior  to  all  others. 
Jones  Winter  Fife  and  Winter  Bluestem  were  among  the  higher 
yielders  of  the  winter  varieties.  Jones  Winter  Fife  has  been  a favored 
winter  wheat  in  the  dry  sections  and  its  yield  per  acre  justifies  its 
wide  distribution.  Winter  Bluestem  which  is  described  In  Table  I 
is  similar  in  appearance  to  the  extensively  grown  spring  Bluestem, 
but  is  hardy  and  withstands  the  winter  conditions  successfully.  It 
would  seem  to  merit  more  attention  as  it  is  a hardy  winter  wheat  and 
grades  commercially  as  Bluestem.  Hybrid  128  has  been  a good  pro- 
ducer in  parts  of  the  dry  belt  and  merits  more  attention. 

LOCATION  OF  FIELD  EXPERIMENTS 

The  field  experiments  have  been  conducted  at  Pullman  and  Bitz- 
ville.  These  two  points  are  representative  of  a vast  wheat  producing 
area  of  Washington.  Pullman  is  situated  in  Whitman  County,  which 
is  representative  of  the  districts  better  favored  in  rainfall.  Ritzville 
is  situated  in  Adams  County,  which  is  representative  of  much  of  the 
drier  wheat  growing  area  of  the  state.  Over  one-third  of  the  wheat 
grown  in  Washington  is  produced  in  these  two  counties. 

Experimental  tests  which  are  trustworthy  must  be  conducted  under 
conditions  similar  to  those  which  they  are  expected  to  represent.  The 
results  of  the  experiments  conducted  at  these  two  places  probably 
furnish  the  best  available  data  on  the  comparative  value  of  the 


16 


Washington  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


A’ciriclics  of  wheat  ineliuled  in  the  tests.  Other  tests  should  be  con- 
duet(‘d  in  otlier  plaees  where  tlie  environmental  eonditions  are  differ- 
ent so  that  similar  infoi'ination  may  Ije  had  for  a wide  range  of 
conditions. 

CONCLUSION 

The  large  number  of  varieties  of  wheat  grown  in  \\  ashington  make 
propt'r  classification  difficult.  The  mixing  of  varieties  either  on  the 
farm  or  during  marketing,  which  is  another  result  of  numerous 
varieties,  has  a tendency  to  reduce  wheat  prices. 

Owing  to  different  soil  and  climatic  conditions  in  various  parts  'i 
the  slate  several  varieties  are  necessary  to  suit  all  re*iuirements.  The 
number  of  varieties  grown  shoulii  be  redm-ed  to  as  few  as  possible. 
In  making  seh'ction  of  the  proper  varieties,  ijuality  as  well  as  yield 
should  be  considered.  Hasty  conclusions  should  not  be  drawn  from 
the  yields  obtained  in  abnormal  years.  The  average  production  for 
a period  of  several  years  gives  more  trustworthy  information. 

t)f  the  varieties  reported  in  this  Imlletin  llyluid  T28  has  excelled 
all  others,  both  in  yield  per  cent  and  quality,  as  shown  by  the  tests 
at  the  Experiment  Station,  lleports  from  tanners  also  indicate  the 
high  merit  of  this  wheat.  It  gives  a six  per  cent  greater  yield  than 
the  average  of  the  other  varieties  t(‘sted.  With  Washington  pro- 
dinnng  a yield  of  forty  million  bushels,  an  increase  of  six  per  cent 
would  nu'an  an  increased  wheat  production  of  2.4  million  bushels  for 
the  statie  It  would  seem  that  this  imn-ease,  which  might  come  from 
the  (dioi(‘e  of  the  ])roper  variety,  is  not  an  impossibility.  Another 
incri'ase  in  the  ^mlue  of  A\  ashington  wheats  should  result  fiom  the 
better  and  more  uniform  (juality  obtained  through  the  use  of  f(‘wer 
commercial  wheats. 

Some  of  the  wheats  which  are  known  as  hybrids  have  been  con- 
sidered in  one  class  and  called  mixed.  It  shonld  bi'  understood  that 
a wheat  of  hylirid  origin  may  be  just  as  pure  as  any  other  wheat. 
Hybrid  128.  for  example,  is  a distinct  variety  and  if  kept  free  from 
outside  mixtures  may  be  expected  to  remain  pure,  just  as  Eluestem, 
Red  Russian,  and  other  standard  varieties.  The  fact  that  a particular 
wheat  rates  Avell  in  one  location  does  not  prove  its  general  value. 
Further  improvement  of  wheats  will  be  more  easily  accomplished 
when  millers  mid  gi’ain  dindin-s  agi'cc*  on  <'('rtinn  definite  clmracter- 
isti(‘S  for  wlumt  of  high  (lnalit^'. 


iiOOM 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERLMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  BOTANY 


A Study  of  Grazing  Conditions  in 
the  Wenaha  National  Forest 

by 

H.  T.  DARLINGTON 


BULLETIN  NO.  122 
May,  1915 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on  application  to  Director. 


Board  of  Control 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  College),  Secretary  ex-Officio Pullman 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 


Experiment  Station  Staff 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D 

Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A 

O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M 

S.  B.  Nelson,  D.  V.  M 

A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D 

O.  M.  Morris,  B.  S 

Geo.  Severance,  B.  S 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S 

Geo.  A.  Olson,  B.  S.  A.,  M.  S, 
W.  T.  Shaw,  B.  Agr.,  M.  S. . . 

E G.  Schafer,  M.  S 

Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D 

C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B 

J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S 

M.  A.  Yothers,  B.  S 

Henry  F.  Holtz,  B.  S 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S 

H.  M.  Woolman 

R.  L.  Buchanan,  B.  S 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Veterinarian 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Assistant  Veterinarian 

Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. . .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
.Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
...Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


F.  W Allen,  M.  S Assistant  Horticulturist 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S Assistant  Chemist 


A Study  of  Grazing  Conditions  in  the 
Wenaha  National  Forest 

by 

H.  T.  DARLINGTON 

Formerly  Assistant  Professor  of  Botany,  State  College  of 

Washington 


GENERAL  SUMMARY 

The  principal  forage  plants  of  the  higher  portions  of  the 
Wenaha  National  Forest  are  perennial  in  character,  consisting 
principally  of  shrubs. 

With  the  exception,  possibly,  of  the  tops  of  some  ridges 
there  seems  to  be  no  deterioration  in  the  grazing  areas.  The 
tops  of  the  ridges,  forming  a small  part  of  the  total  grazing 
area,  and  being  necessary  highways  for  the  sheep,  may  be  con- 
sidered negligible.  This  does  not  apply  to  the  glades. 

On  account  of  snow,  the  range  is  limited  to  about  five 
months  grazing.  This  fact  is  a valuable  element  of  strength, 
which  will  be  permanent. 

Lists  of  the  relative  distribution  and  abundance  of  the 
principal  forage  plants  should  be  made  from  time  to  time,  to 
indicate  whether  there  is  any  undesirable  plant  succession 
going  on. 

The  full  carrying  capacity  of  the  range  is  not  being 
utilized.  A more  complete  utilization  will  require  the  con- 
struction of  new  trails. 

So  far  as  the  regulation  of  the  sheep  industry  and  the  en- 
forcement of  law  and  order  are  concerned.  Government  leas- 
ing to  single  individuals  has  been  a marked  success  in  the 
Wenaha  National  Forest. 

GENERAL  INTRODUCTION 

The  free  range  policy  of  the  past  has  produced  serious 
conditions  in  several  of  the  Western  states.  It  has  led  not 
only  to  bitter  feuds  at  times  between  sheep  men  and  cattle 
men,  but  in  some  cases  to  the  depletion  and  serious  damage  to 
the  range. 

Belief,  on  the  part  of  the  early  settlers,  in  the  inexhaust- 
ibility of  free  ranges  and  the  lack  of  any  tendency  to  conserve 
them  finally  made  government  intervention  and  regulation  a 


4 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITION 


necessity.  It  soon  became  apparent  that  especial  efforts  were 
necessary  and  desirable  to  conserve  the  rang^e,  or  improve  it, 
at  the  same  time  to  preserve  its  utility  to  the  fullest  extent. 

Working  out  of  some  method  of  improvement  becomes  ad- 
visable for  many  of  the  depleted  areas.  The  majority  of 
range  investigations  heretofore  have  been  in  the  arid  or  semi- 
arid  regions.  These  areas  have  lent  themselves  to  the  opera- 
tions of  the  large  stockmen  better  than  the  mountianous  dis- 
tricts, Such  large,  seemingly  waste  tracts,  particularly  those 
of  the  Southwest,  have  been  among  the  first  to  suffer.  It  is 
here  that  a vegetative  covering  holds  its  own  by  only  a small 
margin  against  the  adverse  conditions  of  environment. 
(Where  only  a slight  rainfall  obtains  the  quick  maturing 
grasses  and  drouth-resistant  plants  are  the  prevailing  types). 
Where  this  balanced  condition  has  been  destroyed  by  man,  a 
barren  waste  soon  results.  Later  investigations,  however,  are 
taking  account  of  those  areas  where  vegetation  has,  naturally, 
less  opportunity  of  holding  its  own. 

The  conservation  and  proper  utilization  of  any  particular 
range  is  affected  by  the  location,  climate,  and  altitude  of  the 
range  as  well  as  the  breed  and  number  of  head  grazed  and  the 
methods  of  herding.  The  influence  of  the  leasing  system  and 
the  effect  of  governmental  control  must  be  considered  in  the 
future  in  making  comparative  studies  of  grazing. 

CONDITIONS  IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST 

This  report  is  a description  of  the  work  accomplished  by 
an  expedition  from  the  Department  of  Botany  of  the  State 
College  of  Washington  to  the  Blue  Mountains  for  a period  of 
six  weeks,  during  the  summer  of  1913,  for  the  purpose  of  de- 
termining the  character  and  carrying  capacity  of  the  grazing 
areas  centained  in  the  Wenaha  National  Forest,  situated 
in  the  southeastern  part  of  Washington  and  the  northeastern 
part  of  Oregon.  An  effort  has  been  made  to  interpret  the 
conditions  found  there  in  the  light  of  modem  investigations, 
and  thus  throw  some  light  on  what  may  be  expected  as  to  the 
future  development  and  maintenance  of  the  grazing  areas 
contained  therein. 

The  area  examined  is  used  as  a summer  range  for  a large 
number  of  sheep,  which  winter  in  the  more  or  less  open 
country  between  the  mountains  and  the  Snake  River.  Some 
of  the  more  specific  objects  of  the  study  were:  (1)  To  de- 
termine the  character  of  the  areas  grazed  over;  (2)  to  ascer- 
tain so  far  as  possible  in  the  given  time,  whether  there  has 
been  either  deterioration  or  improvement  in  the  range;  (3)  to 
make  lists  of  the  plants  eaten,  and  also  those  avoided  by  the 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST 


5 


sheep;  (4)  to  determine  whether  the  full  carrying  capacity  of 
the  range  is  being  utilized,  and  (5)  to  obtain  information 
which  might  be  of  value  to  those  who  should  have  the  future 
care  of  the  range. 

The  party  drove  into  the  mountains  by  way  of  Pomeroy. 
Through  the  courtesy  of  Mr.  R.  A.  Jackson,  a large  sheep  own- 
er of  Washington,  the  party  was  afforded  an  opportunity  to 
study  certain  bands  of  sheep  in  the  upper  reaches  of  the  Tu- 
canon  River,  one  of  the  larger  streams  on  the  north  side  of  the 
divide;  and  other  bands  between  Butte  Creek  and  Crooked 
Fork,  streams  on  the  south  side,  flowing  into  the  Wenaha,  or 
Little  Salmon  River.  The  party  is  indebted  to  Walter  Jack- 
son,  who  unofficially  acted  as  guide  over  most  of  the  trails 
leading  to  the  more  inaccessible  portions  of  the  mountains, 
and  to  his  assistance  in  packing  supplies  and  equipment. 
Mr.  Andy  Graden,  Range  Inspector  of  the  Reserve,  kindly 
loaned  the  party  maps  and  furnished  information  in  regard 
to  trails.  Mr.  G.  R.  'Kerns,  a student  of  the  State  College,  act- 
ed as  assistant  on  the  expedition. 

The  investigations  commenced  in  the  upper  Tucanon  Val- 
ley June  20th.  On  account  of  the  wet  weather  this  season, 
the  bands  were  late  in  getting  into  the  mountains.  They  are 
usually  driven  in  between  the  middle  of  May  and  the  middle 
of  June,  and  are  kept  in  the  mountains  about  four  months. 
During  the  fall  their  food  is  principally  the  wheat  bunch  grass 
{Agropyron  spicatum  Pursh)  which  is  common  in  eastern 
Washington,  being  typical  of  the  lower  portion  of  the  Arid 
Transition  zone.  In  the  early  spring  “silver  top”  (Plantago 
purshii  R.  & S)  forms  an  important  part  of  their  food  as  well 
as  several  species  of  grasses.  During  the  worst  of  the  winter 
they  are  fed  on  alfalfa  hay,  thirty  pounds  to  the  head  usually 
being  sufficient  to  carry  them  through  the  winter.  In  appor- 
tioning range  land  for  winter  feed,  about  one  and  one-half 
acres  is  taken  as  a basis  for  calculations;  i.  e.,  a band  of  2,500 
should  be  allowed  about  six  sections. 

Mr.  Jackson’s  sheep  are  in  charge  of  French  herders.  One 
man,  with  the  aid  of  two  dogs,  handles  one  band.  The 
herders  live  in  log  houses  on  the  open  range  during  the  win- 
ter, their  headquarters  during  that  time  being  rather  per- 
manent in  character.  In  the  mountains  on  the  summer  range, 
they  live  in  tents,  moving  camp  every  week  or  ten  days.  The 
bands  observed  contained  approximately  2,500  sheep  each, 
about  1,000  of  them  being  lambs  and  the  rest  ewes.  The 
lambing  period  for  mutton  sheep  begins  about  February  1; 
for  fine  wools,  about  March  1.  Mr.  Jackson  makes  a specialty 
of  American  Rambouillets, 


6 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


GRAZING  AREAS 

In  studying-  the  grazing-  problem,  it  is  necessary  to  know 
something  of  the  physical  features  of  the  area  grazed  over. 
The  Wenaha  National  Forest  contains  1,237.5  souare  miles, 
500  square  miles  being  situated  in  the  State  of  Washington, 
in  Garfield,  Asotin,  and  Columbia  counties.  This  part  of  the 
Blue  Mountain  range  extends  in  a general  northeasterly  and 
southwesterly  direction,  the  outer  portion  consisting  of  rather 
low-lying  foothills.  The  topography  of  the  inner  portion  is 
quite  rugged,  consisting  of  high  ridges  with  deep  valleys  be- 
tween, accessible  during  only  a few  months  of  the  year. 
This  is  where  the  sheep  are  summer-ranged.  The  nar- 
row valleys  between  the  low  foothills,  which  were  form- 
erly used  as  ranges,  are,  in  most  cases,  fairly  well  set- 
tled up  with  small  ranches.  A good  deal  of  hay  is  grown  on 
the  lower,  more  level  and  onen  land,  furnishing  a large  sup- 
ply of  winter  feed.  The  higher  valleys  are  wooded  and  so 
narrow  as  to  make  ranching,  even  on  a small  scale,  imprac- 
ticable. 

Fairly  good  mountain  roads  are  found  in  the  lower  val- 
leys, but  the  interior  nortions  of  the  mountains  are  reached 
only  by  pack  horses  often  over  steep,  rugged  trails.  Many 
of  these  trails  have  been  built  by  pioneer  sheep  men  at  con- 
siderable labor  and  expense.  They  are  maintained  and  kept 
open  at  present  by  the  Government  forest  rangers,  and  al- 
most invariably  follow  the  tops  of  the  ridges,  forming  the 
only  practicable  means  of  access  to  the  region.  There  is  no 
difficulty  in  driving  sheep  over  the  roughest  of  them,  tho 
there  may  be  trouble  in  getting  pack  horses  over.  The  deep 
interior  valleys  are  covered  with  a dense  stand  of  timber 
near  the  bottoms,  which  usually  thins  out  toward  the  tops  of 
the  ridges.  Many  of  the  latter  are  rocky  and  barren  in 
places,  affording  only  a slight  growth  of  grasses.  This  alter- 
nation of  deep  valleys  and  high  ridges,  with  variations  of 
from  2000  to  3000  feet,  naturally  produces  marked  varia- 
tions in  the  physical  factors  which  influence  the  vegetative 
covering.  The  valleys,  with  their  mountain  streams  and 
dense  brush  and  timber,  are  always  cool,  even  in  summer. 
These  small  streams  are  usually  bordered  with  a dense  growth 
of  underbrush;  the  banks  of  the  streams  are  often  steep  and 
rocky,  so  that  trail  building  along  the  bottoms  of  the  valleys 
is  unusual.  The  trails  would  be  expensive  to  maintain  as  well 
as  to  build,  on  account  of  the  fallen  timber  and  luxuriant 
growth  of  shrubbery  which  would  have  to  be  removed  from 
time  to  time.  The  valleys,  however,  are  more  equable  in 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST. 


7 


their  climate  than  the  ridges.  The  latter  become  dry  in  sum- 
mer and  cold  and  wind-swept  in  the  winter,  giving  the  great- 
est extremes  of  temperature. 

The  highest  points  in  the  section  of  country  visited  are 
the  iilast  and  west  Oregon  Huttes,  the  former  reaching  a 
height  of  bdOO  feet  above  sea-level,  in  the  vicinity  of  these 
buttes,  snow  lies  well  into  the  middle  of  summer,  and  several 
swift  mountain  streams  rise  in  this  vicinity,  from  watersheds 
sloping  in  nearly  every  direction,  all  eventually  pouring  their 
waters  into  the  Snake  River.  From  observations  made  by 
K.  A.  Jackson,  extending  over  a period  of  twenty  years,  it  is 
thot  the  ramlall  m this  section  of  the  mountains  will  average 
2o  inches,  iiy  the  middle  of  October,  the  range  usually  be- 
comes snowbound,  and  the  sheep  must  be  taken  out  a week 
or  more  before  this  time,  and  put  on  the  winter  range  until 
May.  Light  rams  are  of  frequent  occurrence  during  the  sum- 
mer months,  so  that  the  range  is  not  subjected  to  those  long 
periods  of  drouth  which  are  characteristic  of  the  open  ranges 
of  the  Southwest.  So  far  as  the  writer  knows,  no  experi- 
ments have  been  made  as  to  the  depths  to  which  the  soil  is 
wet  by  either  the  summer  rains  or  the  winter  snows.  Gen- 
erally speaking,  the  soil  on  top  of  the  ridges  is  of  an  open, 
more  or  less  friable  nature,  adapted  in  every  way  to  a rapid 
run-off.  In  places  it  is  only  a few  inches  deep,  and  supports 
only  a few  hardy  plants,  especially  those  forming  rosettes. 
Several  ridges,  however,  are  timbered  entirely  to  the  top, 
where  the  soil  accumulates  more  humus,  and  retains  more 
moisture,  so  that  a greater  variation  is  found  in  the  types  of 
vegetation.  The  soil  in  the  bottoms  of  the  valleys  is  natur- 
ally more  loamy,  containing  those  elements  which  enable  it, 
together  with  the  greater  moisture  and  more  uniform  temp- 
erature, to  support  a greater  variety  of  plant  life. 

From  what  has  been  said,  it  is  evident  that  the  physical 
factors  favor  perennial  forms  of  vegetation.  The  predom- 
inating species  are,  in  fact,  perennials.  This  is  especially  true 
of  the  lower,  cooler  slopes.  The  exposed  places  higher  up, 
having  greater  extremes  of  temperature  are  better  suited  to 
annual  types.  It  is  fortunate  that  the  range  is  inaccessible 
until  late  in  the  spring,  since  the  young  seedlings  are  then 
well  rooted,  and  the  ground  has  had  some  chance  to  stiffen 
up  after  the  melting  snows. 

In  general,  three  zones  of  vegetation  may  be  recognized 
in  the  region  examined,  the  lowest  in  altitude  being  what  is 
usually  termed  the  yellow  pine  zone.  Above  this  come  the 
Canadian  and  Hudsonian  zones,  these  constituting  most  of  the 
grazing  areas  for  the  sheep.  There  are  no  sharp  limits  to 


8 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


these  zones,  which  necessarily  overlap  each  other.  However, 
each  is  usually  marked  by  more  or  less  predominant  species 
of  plants.  The  conditions  of  the  yellow  pine  or  Transition 
zone  are  confined  almost  entirely  to  the  lower  valleys.  The 
lower  portion  of  such  streams  as  Tucanon  Creek,  Touchet 
Creek,  and  of  several  streams  flowing  south  into  the  Grande 
Ronde  River  fall  into  this  zone.  Yellow  pine  (Pinus  ponde- 
rosa  Dougl).,  is  the  dominant  type  of  tree.  It  is  usually 
associated  with  Douglas  fir  {Pseudotsuga  mucronata  Raf.) 
and  white  fir  (Abies  grandis  Lindl.),  with  scattering  trees  of 
Western  Larch  (Larix  occidentalis  Nutt.).  There  is  con- 
erable  variation  in  the  density  of  the  stand  of  yellow  pine, 
and  in  the  amount  of  shrubbery  present.  As  before  stated, 
the  lower,  wider  portions  of  the  valleys  have  been  settled 
for  many  years. 

in  the  Canadian  zone,  which  runs  up  to  5000  feet,  the 
yellow  pine  almost  disappears.  Lodgepole  pine,  a form  of 
Pinus  contorta  Dough,  was  found  to  be  common  in  certain 
sections  of  the  zone,  Douglas  fir  and  white  fir  seem  to  be 
almost  equally  distributed.  However,  these  trees  are  usually 
confined  to  the  draws  running  down  from  the  ridges  and  to 
north  slopes.  Englemann’s  spruce  (Picea  engelmanni  Parry) 
is  found  occasionally  in  the  deep,  cool  valleys.  The  south 
slopes  are  almost  devoid  of  timber,  but  have  small  areas  of 
bunch  grass  (Agropyron  spicatum  Pursh)  and  brome  grass 
(Bromus  marginatus  Nees.)  here  and  there.  Several  im- 
portant shrubs  are  found  here,  which,  together  with  the 
grasses,  afford  good  grazing  for  the  sheep.  On  account  of 
the  very  rugged  character  of  the  country,  with  its  extremes 
of  altitude,  exposure  and  temperature,  the  conditions  of  the 
two  zones  mentioned  are  strangely  mixed.  For  instance,  on 
hillsides  with  south  exposures  in  the  Canadian  zone,  especial- 
ly where  the  soil  is  of  a gravelly  nature,  it  is  not  unusual  to 
find  a patch  of  yellow  pine. 

Still  further  in  the  interior  of  the  ranges,  the  character 
of  the  country  is  somewhat  different.  Some  of  the  principal 
higher  ridges  broaden  out  on  top  to  form  plateaus,  designat- 
ed locally  as  “glades.”  The  predominant  tree  of  this  zone, 
the  Hudsonian,  becomes  the  Alpine  fir  (Abies  lasiocarpa 
Hook.),  tho  Douglas  fir  is  quite  common.  Mountain  mahog- 
any (Cercocarpus  ledifolius  Nutt.)  and  Rocky  Mountain  juni- 
per (Juniperus  scopulorum  Sarg.)  are  found  here  on  barren, 
rocky  ridges,  not  appearing  in  the  other  zones.  Tho  there 
is  some  grass  in  this  zone,  by  far  the  greater  portion  of  the 
food  of  the  sheep  is  “browse”  from  the  shrubs  which  cover 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST 


9 


a large  portion  of  the  steep  hillsides.  Trails  are  quite  easily 
constructed  thru  the  glades,  as  a usual  thing;  tho  occasion- 
ally one  encounters  a dense  stand  of  lodgepole  pine,  or  a 
“burn.”  The  glades  contain  a considerable  amount  of  pas- 
ture land,  but  they  necessarily  form  part  of  the  highways 
for  the  sheep,  and  furnish  pasturage  for  the  pack  horses,  so 
that  they  are  kept  closely  cropped.  Being  comparatively 
level,  they  afford  good  camping  places,  and  corral  grounds 
for  counting  and  segregating  the  sheep.  It  is  not  unusual 
to  find  good  springs  of  water  in  the  glades;  in  fact,  small 
patches  of  marshy  ground,  abounding  with  various  sedges, 
are  not  uncommon  in  places. 

The  grazing  area  described  above  is  controlled  by  the 
federal  government  and  is  leased  to  individual  sheep  owners 
under  well  known  rules  and  restrictions. 

THE  CAMP  AT  TALLOW  FLAT 

It  was  decided  to  study  first  a band  of  sheep  which  was 
stationed  at  Tallow  Flat,  a point  on  the  main  ridge  between 
Tucanon  Creek  and  Little  Tucanon,  in  section  36,  Twp.  9 N., 
R.  40  E.  This  ridge  is  typical  of  all  the  lower  ridges;  there- 
fore a description  of  conditions  found  there  will  be  illustra- 
tive of  most  of  the  Canadian  zone. 

In  all  cases  observed,  the  sheep  were  bedded  on  the  tops 
of  the  ridges,  the  herding  system  being  adopted.  The  Gov- 
ernment, in  cooperation  with  certain  sheep  owners  in  the  Re- 
serve, is  making  experiments  in  which  the  bedding  out  sys- 
tem is  compared  with,  the  above-mentioned  system.  The 
herders  show  an  unwillingness  to  adopt  the  bedding-out  sys- 
tem, claiming  that  it  is  too  hard  work  for  both  the  man  and 
the  dogs.  In  the  herding  system  the  sheep  leave  the  bedding 
ground  in  the  morning  and  return  again  the  evening, 
the  time  of  leaving  and  returning  depending  somewhat  on 
tne  state  of  the  weather,  in  the  vicinity  of  Tallow  Flat,  the 
top  of  the  ridge  broadens  out  from  200  to  300  yards  in  places. 
In  other  portions  of  the  ridge  close  by,  it  narrows  on  top  to 
only  a few  yards  in  width,  with  rocky,  rather  precipitous 
slopes  in  places.  At  this  point,  the  faces  or  slopes  of  the 
ridge  are  about  a mile  in  width,  marked  and  furrowed  with 
secondary  ridges  and  valleys,  forming  watersheds  to  the 
streams  above  mentioned.  The  top  of  the  ridge  in  places  is 
timbered,  and  forms  a good  camping  ground.  Springs  are 
found  nearby  in  the  timber,  and  such  springs  originating 
near  the  tops  of  the  ridges  are  not  uncommon.  The  flat  por- 
tion of  the  ridge,  which  is  almost  destitute  of  any  vegeta- 
tion, is  used  as  bedding  ground  for  the  sheep.  On  the  edge 


10 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


of  the  timber  close  by,  the  herder  has  his  camp.  He  thus  has 
his  sheep  close  enough  at  night  to  make  them  comparatively 
safe  from  the  molestations  of  any  wild  animals.  Cougars  and 
bob-cats  have  occasionally  given  some  trouble,  but  the  dogs 
usually  give  the  alarm.  Such  a bedding  ground  is  used  year 
after  year.  There  is  an  advantage  in  this,  since  the  sites 
chosen  have  natural  advantages  such  as  shelter  for  the  tent, 
wood  supply  and  water,  besides  trails,  salt-troughs  for  salting 
the  sheep,  and  other  more  or  less  permanent  structures 
which  the  ingenuity  of  the  herder  may  suggest.  From  this 
camp  as  a temporary  headquarters,  the  herder  grazes  tUe 
sheep  on  both  sides  of  the  ridge,  supposedly  within  the  ter- 
ritory covered  by  the  lease.  The  areas  covered  by  the  lease 
are  usually  bounded  by  creeks  and  ridges.  Upon  the  camp 
mover,  who  packs  in  supplies  and  moves  the  camps  from 
time  to  time,  devolves  the  responsibility  of  keeping  the 
band  within  leased  territory. 

PLANTS  EATEN  BY  THE  SHEEP 

Two  bands  were  studied  for  some  time,  one  in  the  Can- 
adian, and  one  in  the  Hudsonian  zone.  Notes  on  others  were 
taken  as  occasion  offered.  A careful  record  was  made  of  the 
plants  eaten  at  each  place.  So  far  as  most  of  the  shrubby 
plants  are  concerned,  the  conditions  were  very  similar  in 
both  cases.  . The  exceptions  will  be  noted  later 

The  common  shrubs  growing  on  the  hillsides  which  furn- 
ish the  chief  food  of  the  sheep  are:  service-berry  ( Ame^an- 
chier  florida  Lindl.);  Ninebark  {Opulaster  paucifiorus  (T.  & 
G.)  Heller);  ocean  spray  {Holodiscus  discolor  (Pursh)  Max- 
in);  mountain  maple  {Acer  douglasii {^ook.)  (Piper);  Scouler 
willow  ^ {Salix  scouleriana  Barratt);  wild  cherry  {Prunus 
emarginata  (Dough)  Walk.);  and  Spiraea  corymhosa  Raf. 
The  sheep  browse  on  the  leaves  and  tender  shoots  of  these 
shrubs.  The  relative  abundance  and  distribution  of  these 
plants  vary  considerably.  In  general,  they  are  more  abun- 
dant in  the  small  draws  having  a north  or  west  exposure.  This 
is  especially  true  of  the  willows,  maples,  wild  cherry  and 
service-berry.  Sheep  are  very  fond  of  the  leaves  of  service- 
berry,  often  standing  on  their  hind  legs  to  pull  down  the 
branches.  Ninebark  is  abundant  and  much  eaten.  Spiraea 
and  ocean  spray  are  found  on  the  drier  situations.  The  leaves 
of  these  are  drier  and  not  liked  as  much  as  some  of  the  other 
shrubs.  However,  the  wild  rose  bush,  which  often  grows  in 
dry  situations,  produces  tender  leaves  and  shoots  which  are 
relished  by  the  lambs,  as  well  as  the  older  sheep.  The  wax- 
berry  hush  (Syn).phorica7y os  racemosus  Michx.)  is  not  usually 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST 


11 


eaten  during  the  summer,  the  leaves  being  tough  and  leath- 
ery. Neither  the  chokecherry  {Prunus  demissa  (Nutt.) 
Dietr.)  buckbrush  {Ceanothus  sanguineus  Pursh);  nor 
sticky  laurel  {Ceanothus  velutinus  Dough)  were  common  at 
Tallow  h'lat  camp.  Where  present,  however,  they  were  eaten 
with  relish.  The  sheep  are  very  fond  of  the  younger,  more 
succulent  shoots  of  species  of  elder  {Sambucus  glauca  Nutt.) 
and (5.  melanocarpa  Gray).  The  latter,  tne  red-berried  elder, 
is  found  commonly  in  the  higher  portions  of  the  mountains. 
Whether  this  shrub  will  be  able  to  persist  when  the  young 
shoots  are  destroyed  year  after  year  is  a point  worth  watch- 
ing. A certain  amount  of  wheat  bunchgrass  is  usually  found 
on  the  drier  hillsides,  but  grass  is  scarce  amongst  the  brush. 
Tufts  of  brome  grass  yBromus  marginatus  Nees)  and  sheep 
fescue  {Festuca  ovina  Hack.)  are  not  common.  Where  bunch- 
grass  and  brome  grass  appear,  they  are  stripped  of  their 
leaves  by  lambs,  the  flowering  heads  often  being  left  un- 
touched. Some  of  the  common  herbs  are  eaten  more  or  less, 
but  they  form  a comparatively  unimportant  part  of  the  for- 
age. Among  those  eaten  are  “wild  parsnip”  {Pteryxia  foe- 
niculacea  Nutt);  yarrow  {Achillea  millefolium  Yar.lanulosum 
(Nutt.)  Piper);  painted  cup  {Castilleja  Sp.  );alum  root  {Heu- 
chera  glabella  T.  & G.  );  purple  avens  {Sieversia  ciliata 
(Purshj  G.  Don.);  hawkweed  {Hieracium  scouleri  Hook.)  and 
{Gilia  aggregata  (Pursh)  Spreng.).  The  “wild  parsnip”  is 
eaten  wherever  found,  and  seems  to  do  no  injury.  The  sheep 
eat  the  leaves  of  certain  lupines,  but  avoid  the  yellow  lupine 
{Lupinus  sulphureus  Dough).  The  plants  mentioned  above 
supplied  practically  all  of  the  food  in  the  vicinity  of  Tallow 
Pdat,  which  may  be  taken  as  fairly  representative  of  the  low- 
er portion  of  the  range. 

CAMP  AT  POVERTY  FLAT 

Three  weeks  later  the  party  was  located  in  the  higher, 
interior  portion  of  the  range,  about  two  miles  south  of  the 
East  Oregon  i_.utte,  between  Butte  Creek  and  Crooked  Fork, 
the  vegetative  zone  being  the  Hudsonian.  Here  another 
band  was  studied.  As  before  stated,  the  tops  of  the  ridges 
here  often  broaden  out  into  plateaus  of  considerable  extent, 
which  are  frequently  timbered.  These  often  border  rather 
abruptly  and  sometimes  precipitously  on  very  deep  valleys, 
which  include  a wide  range  of  vegetation  from  top  to  bottom. 
In  this  zone  sticky  laurel  becomes  abundant  and  forms  an  im- 
portant part  of  the  forage.  Besides  most  of  the  shrubs  men- 
tioned for  the  Canadian  zone,  the  following  were  noted  as 
forming  a part  of  the  food  of  the  sheep;  red  osier  dogwood 


12 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


i^Cornus  stolonifera  Michx.);  mountain  ash  setchensis 

(Room.)  Piper);  fly-honeysuckle  (Lonicera  involucrata 
Banks.),  and  various  species  of  wild  currant  {Ribes).  Some 
of  the  important  herbs  eaten  here  were:  cinquefoil  {Drymo- 
callis  glandulosa  (Lindl.)  Kydb.);  wild  rye  grass  {Elymustri- 
ticoides  Buckl.);  various  species  of  sweet  cicely  {Osmorkiza), 
and  brome  grass.  The  latter  is  frequently  abundant  on  old 
bedding  grounds,  though  often  smutted.  Some  of  the  older 
bedding  grounds  are  covered  with  Monolepis  nuttalliana 
(Roem  & Schult.)  Green,  lambs  quarters  {Chenopodium  al- 
bum L.),  and  other  weeds  of  the  same  character. 

“What  the  sheep  eat  depends  largely  on  what  they  have 
to  eat.”  Their  favorite  “browse”  among  the  above  mentioned 
shrubs  are  service-berry,  ninebark  and  sticky  laurel.  Various 
species  of  Pentstemon,  including  P,  deustus  Dough,  F.  dif- 
fusus,  P,  fruticosus  (Pursh.)  Green,  and  F.  attenuatusDougl. 
are  exceedingly  common  in  the  Blue  Mountains  and  form  a 
larger  part  of  the  herbaceous  vegetation  in  the  higher  parts, 
but  so  far  as  the  writer  observed,  the  sheep  will  not  touch 
them.  In  addition,  the  following  plants  were  generally  avoid- 
ed: The  bracken  fern  {Pteridium  aquilinum  Underw.)  the 
meadow  rue  {Thalictrum  occidentale  Gray),  Phacelia  het- 
erophylla  Pursh.  and  Lupinus  sulphureus  Dough 

When  feeding  the  older  sheep  scout  ahead,  and  browse 
on  the  larger  shrubs,  while  the  lambs  seem  to  eat  nearly  ev- 
erything they  can  get:  i.  e.,  their  forage  seems  to  be  more 
diversified.  Grasses,  however,  form  a larger  proportion  of 
their  food  than  that  of  the  older  sheep. 

There  were  no  cases  of  poisoning  so  far  as  the  writer 
knows  in  either  of  the  bands  during  the  time  they  were  un- 
der observation.  Special  care  was  taken  to  observe  whether 
the  sheep  ate  larkspur  (Delphinium  menziesii  D C. ).  The 
plant  was  frequently  met  with  where  the  tops  were  nipped 
off,  but  no  injury  seemed  to  follow.  Another  band  in  the  vi- 
cinity of  the  Oregon  Buttes  (not  belonging  to  R.  H.  Jackson), 
reported  several  lambs  lost  by  poisoning.  The  herders  report 
that  the  lambs  suffer  the  most  frequently  from  poisoning, 
and  that  it  occurs  most  along  streams  in  the  timber.  The 
sheep  are  rarely  watered. 

From  all  observations,  it  is  evident  that  the  leaves  of 
shrubs,  or  “browse,”  constitute  the  chief  food  of  the  sheep 
in  the  higher  portions  of  the  mountains. 

ANNUAL  AND  PERENNIAL  RANGES 

In  any  discussions  of  those  causes  which  may  operate  to 
maintain  or  improve  the  range  under  consideration,  it  is  well 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST 


13 


not  only  to  consider  rather  carefully  the  character  of  the 
range,  but  to  point  out  some  of  the  essential  differences  be- 
tween annual  and  perennial  ranges.  An  annual  range  is  one 
in  which  the  predominating  forage  plants  are  annuals,  or 
plants  lasting  but  one  year.  Annuals  usually  produce  an 
abundance  of  viable  seed.  Such  ranges  are  characteristic  of 
arid  or  semi-arid  regions.  Where  perennial  forage  plants  are 
the  most  abundant,  the  areas  are  known  as  perennial  ranges. 
They  are  characteristic  of  those  sections  where  rains  are 
more  or  less  frequent.  Mountainous  or  timbered  grazing 
areas  as  well  as  many  of  the  northern  grassy  plains  are  of 
this  character.  In  general  they  are  more  plastic  and  endur- 
ing than  the  annual  type  of  range.  Since  the  latter  depends 
on  the  production  of  seed  for  its  preservation,  close  cropping 
before  the  seeds  mature  means  a destruction  of  a large  part 
of  the  next  generation,  as  well  as  the  present.  This  may  not 
always  show  on  a virgin  range,  as  there  is  a certain  amount 
of  ungerminated  seed  lying  dormant.  An  annual  range 
should  therefore  never  be  cropped  too  closely.  A certain 
percentage  of  the  plants  should  always  be  left,  varying  with 
the  strength  of  the  range.  Injury  due  to  close  cropping  is  not 
so  apparent  in  a perennial  range  as  the  principal  forage  plants 
persist  by  means  of  underground  parts  which  live 
over  winter  and  are  the  principal  means  of  renewing 
the  growth' of  the  plants  in  the  spring.  On  the  other  hand, 
annuals  can  take  advantage  of  the  seasons;  their  occupation 
of  an  area  is  often  only  temporary.  In  some  cases,  they  may 
germinate,  mature  and  seed  in  the  short  space  of  five  or  six 
weeks;  such  are  the  so-called  summer  annuals.  Where  they 
germinate  in  the  fall,  rest  during  the  winter  by  forming  ros- 
ettes, and  mature  the  following  spring,  they  are  known  as 
winter  annuals. 

To  use  a range  intelligently,  evidently  something  should 
be  known  of  the  life  history  of  the  principal  forage  plants. 
In  the  Wenaha  National  Forest,  annuals  form  an  unimportant 
part  of  the  forage.  The  problems  to  be  considered  are  those 
of  a perennial  range. 

RANGE  DETERIORATION 

To  work  out  a satisfactory  scheme  of  range  mainten- 
ance for  any  locality,  it  is  necessary  to  understand  some  of 
the  causes  which  have  led  to  deterioration  in  some  grazing 
sections.  The  primary  cause  has  been  overgrazing,  but  this 
may  take  several  phases:  1.  There  may  be  too  many  ani- 
mals to  a given  area.  2.  The  bands  or  herds  may  be  kept 
too  long  in  one  place.  3.  The  grazing  may  be  started  too 


14 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


early  in  the  spring  before  the  seedlings  are  sufficiently  de- 
veloped. 4.  In  the  case  of  some  annual  ranges,  proper  al- 
lowance is  not  made  for  a poor,  dry  season,  when  the  propor- 
tion of  forage  is  below  the  normal.  The  free  range  has  been 
particularly  subject  to  overcrowding,  because  of  the  absence 
of  any  restrictions.  The  effects  of  overstocking  are  not  at 
first  apparent;  they  are  cumulative.  Again,  the  community 
grows;  more  settlers  move  in;  part  of  the  range  is  often 
farmed,  leaving  less  to  be  grazed,  and  the  roads  and  trails  be- 
come continually  more  accessible.  All  of  these  have  their 
effects,  where  the  bands  or  herds  are  kept  too  long  in  one 
place,  they  do  darnage  not  only  by  too  close  cropping,  but  of- 
ten by  injuring  the  physical  character  of  the  soil.  Continual 
tramping  on  a clayey  soil  packs  it  so  closely  as  to  prevent 
plant  growth.  The  erf'ects  of  this  are  found  around  watering- 
places.  Gravelly  soils,  on  the  other  hand,  are  sometimes 
loosened  and  furrowed  by  sheep  bunching  too  closely. 

Even  when  it  is  apparent  that  the  carrying  capacity  of 
a range  has  been  reduced  by  adverse  climatic  conditions,  such 
as  prolonged  drouth  in  certain  sections,  it  is  sometimes  found 
impossible  to  reduce  the  herds.  Again,  in  certain  range  re- 
gions, it  has  been  found  that  the  more  abundant  raising  of 
hay  has  been  an  indirect  cause  of  the  depletion  of  the  free 
ranges,  by  increasing  the  number  of  stock  that  can  be  win- 
terded  over  and  fed  on  the  summer  range. 

When  close  cropping  is  practiced,  a selective  process 
goes  on,  which  eventually  hastens  deterioration.  The  best 
forage  plant  is  that  which  is  eaten  most  closely;  this  is  the 
first  to  suffer.  Weakened  until  it  ceases  to  be  the  dominant 
forage  species,  a less  valuable  plant  then  takes  its  place  and 
becomes  the  dominant  type.  The  succession  is  often  grad- 
ual and  unnoticeable,  but  eventually  a new  plant  society  is 
established,  and  the  dominant  species  are  found  to  be  worth- 
less weeds.  Some  of  our  perennial  ranges,  of  whose  value 
and  permanence  we  feel  most  assured,  are  deceptive  in  this 
respect.  The  principal  forage  plants  of  such  ranges  should  be 
watched  and  lists  of  the  more  valuable  plants  checked  up 
from  time  to  time  in  regard  to  their  relative  quantities  and 
distribution. 

The  grazing  lands  included  within  the  Wenaha  National 
Forest  are  fortunately  free  from  the  injuries  common  to 
many  ranges.  The  character  of  the  range  and  the  compara- 
tively late  season  at  which  it  can  be  entered  are  in  its  favor. 
Overcrowding  and  overcropping  in  the  ordinary  sense  are 
prevented  by  Government  control.  It  is  believed,  however. 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST 


15 


that  a careful  watch  should  be  made  of  any  tendency  toward 
an  undesirable  plant  succession. 

CARRYING  CAPACITY 

The  question  as  to  how  closely  a ran^e  may  be  safely 
grazed  is  an  important  one.  It  will  depend  on  the  character 
of  the  range  as  well  as  the  time  of  year.  If  an  annual  range 
is  grazed  before  the  important  forage  plants  mature  their 
seed,  evidently  it  will  not  be  safe  to  graze  to  the  maximum 
capacity.  If  the  same  sort  of  range  is  grazed  after  the  seeds 
have  matured  and  dropped,  fairly  close  grazing  will  not  in- 
jure it,  altho  the  nutritive  value  of  annuals  at  this  period  is 
low,  and  even  in  the  case  of  the  perennials  the  plants  are -less 
palatable  than  before  the  seeds  mature.  This  applies  particu- 
larly to  some  of  the  important  forage  grasses.  Where  the 
forage  of  a perennial  range  consists  almost  entirely  of 
“browse”  from  shrubs,  it  is  less  likely  to  be  injured  than  a 
perennial  grass  range.  The  highest  utilization  of  the  range 
within  limits,  having  a proper  regard  for  the  future,  is  often 
designated  its  optimum  caqacity.  This  is  evidently  less  than 
the  maximum  capacity  for  any  given  year.  The  difference 
between  the  maximum  and  the  optimum  forms  the  reserve 
strength  of  the  range,  which  must  be  guarded.  The  com- 
monest mistake  of  sheep  and  cattle  men  is  to  put  the  op- 
timum too  high.  Deterioration  is  rapid  after  the  optimum  is 
reached.  This  makes  it  highly  desirable  that  careful  experi- 
ments be  made  to  determine  the  optimum  in  a given  range. 
The  optimum  in  an  annual  range  is  lower  than  that  of  a per- 
ennial. The  forage  value  of  the  annual  is  also  less. 

The  grazing  plants  of  the  Wenaha  National  Forest,  being 
mostly  shrubby,  suffer  only  from  partial  defoliation.  This 
takes  place  during  the  summer  and  early  fall,  when  the 
plants  are  in  flower  or  fruit.  Whether  this  partial  defoliation 
year  after  year  will  sensibly  weaken  these  plants,  is  a ques- 
tion. It  seems  impossible  to  determine  this  in  a short  time; 
so  far  as  can  be  judged  on  the  spot,  there  seems  to  be  no  evi- 
dence of  it.  If  the  sheep  were  allowed  to  browse  on  these 
shrubs  during  the  early  spring  months,  probably  injury  would 
result. 

The  only  parts  of  the  range  which  are  denuded  are  the 
tops  of  the  ridges.  These  have  for  years  formed  highways 
for  the  sheep  in  passing  from  one  place  to  another.  The 
total  surface  thus  used  forms  a comparatively  small  portion 
of  the  total  area.  But  taking  the  area  observed  as  typical 
of  the  Blue  Mountain  section,  it  would  seem  that  the  range 
is  not  being  utilized  to  its  full  carrying  capacity.  In  the 


16 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


bands  studied  the  sheep  pastured  from  one-third  to  one-half 
the  distance  down  the  side  of  the  ridge.  The  remaining  two- 
thirds  or  one-half  the  hillside  is  left  ungrazed.  This  is  due 
to  the  fact  that  the  bedding  grounds  are  on  the  tops  of  the 
ridges.  The  distance  the  sheep  go  down  and  return  in  a day 
represents  the  days  feeding.  The  next  day  they  are  fed  from 
another  point  of  the  ridge.  Below  the  area  of  a day’s  feed- 
ing it  would  be  hard  to  go  from  a bedding  ground  on  top  of 
the  ridge,  as  the  sheep  are  driven  with  difficulty  over  a pre- 
viously grazed  area.  They  resist  the  driving  efforts  of  the 
dogs,  bunch  together  and  plant  their  feet  in  the  ground  in 
such  a way  as  to  plow  furrows  and  even  destroy  shrubby  veg- 
etation. The  only  solution  would  seem  to  be  to  construct 
more  trails  lower  down  on  the  hillsides.  This  would  mean 
some  expense,  but  would  probably  be  justified  by  the  greater 
utilization  of  the  range. 

RANGE  IMPROVEMENT 

The  principal  cause  leading  to  range  investigation  has 
been  deterioration  of  the  ranges.  Various  efforts  have  been 
made  to  restore  depleted  ranges  to  their  original  condition. 
These  efforts  have  been  directed  along  several  lines,  such  as 
(1)  fencing  and  resting  the  land  during  parts  of  one  season 
or  for  parts  of  several  seasons,  (2)  rotation  of  pastures,  (3) 
reduction  in  the  number  of  stock  over  a given  area,  and  (4) 
reseeding  with  or  without  cultivation.  In  the  range  pos- 
sessing little  reserve  strength,  such  as  some  of  those  of  the 
arid  regions,  recovery  is  a serious  question.  In  places,  des- 
truction has  gone  on  so  far  that  erosion  has  set  in,  due  to  the 
lack  of  any  sustaining  plant  roots,  or  to  the  furrowing  pro- 
duced by  the  feet  of  grazing  animals.  Artificial  reseeding  on 
such  large  areas  is  probably  not  practicable  at  the  present 
time.  Careful  experiments,  however,  have  shown  that  it  is 
possible,  especially  where  the  ground  is  cultivated.  This 
of  course  should  be  done  if  the  returns  will  justify  the  ex- 
pense. The  cheapest  and  most  practicable  way  of  restoring 
such  ranges  is  to  give  them  some  form  of  rest.  This  always 
involves  a number  of  economic  problems,  which  should  be 
made  secondary  to  the  main  problem — the  restoration  of  the 
range.  The  solution  of  the  economic  problems  is  often  a mat- 
ter of  legislation.  Where  land  is  held  in  private  ownership, 
it  can  be  fenced;  on  public  land  some  sort  of  range  inspection 
seems  necessary.  In  the  stronger  and  more  valuable  per- 
ennial ranges,  there  is  more  chance  of  improvement.  Re- 
seeding is  often  advisable;  new  forage  plants  may  be  intro- 
duced with  success  The  question  naturally  arises  as  to  what 
extent  a primitive  range  may  be  improved. 


IN  THE  WENAHA  NATIONAL  FOREST  17 

In  the  Wenaha  National  Forest,  there  is  a large  amount 
of  open,  un timbered  land.  As  stated  elsewhere,  this  is  usual- 
ly on  the  south  and  east  slopes.  In  many  places  even  the 
shrubby  vegetation  is  sparse.  Bunchgrass  occupies  some  of 
these  open  spaces.  In  other  places  there  is  little  vegetation  of 
any  kind.  In  some  of  these  seemingly  sterile  places  brome 
grass  seems  to  grow  readily.  This  is  a fairly  good  forage 
grass;  the  sheep  are  fond  of  it.  Whether  this  grass  can  be 
made  to  grow  abundantly  on  these  open  areas  is  a question 
for  the  future  to  determine.  In  the  moist  valleys  of  the  Can- 
adian zone,  and  the  open  meadows  of  the  Hudsonian,  there 
seems  to  be  no  reason  why  timothy  and  redtop  could  not  be 
introduced.  Seed  could  be  sown  in  the  higher  valleys  and 
draws  in  autumn  before  the  snow  falls.  Cultivation  would 
probably  not  be  practicable  at  present,  except  perhaps  in 
some  of  the  glades,  on  account  of  the  inaccessibility  and  very 
rough  nature  of  the  country. 

In  closing,  it  may  be  said  that  the  future  of  the  We- 
naha range  is  promising.  Tho  not  so  intensive,  acre  for  acre, 
as  a grass  range,  its  shrubby  nature  gives  it  an  element  of 
stability  which  a purely  grass  range  lacks.  However,  in  the 
treatment  of  a grazing  area,  it  is  well  to  keep  in  mind  the 
old  adage,  “An  ounce  of  prevention  is  worth  a pound  of 
cure.”  In  those  parts  of  our  country  where  the  climate  and 
rainfall  are  adapted  to  tilling  the  soil,  only  the  roughest  por- 
tions will  eventually  be  left  as  grazing  areas.  This  condition 
applies  to  the  Wenaha  National  Forest.  , 

BIBLIOGRAPHY 

1.  Beattie,  R.  Kent.  Plants  Used  for  Food  by  Sheep 
on  the  Mica  Mountain  Summer  Range.  Washington  Agri- 
cultural Experiment  Station,  General  Bulletin  No.  113,  1913. 

2. Bentley,  H.  L.  Experiments  in  Range  Improvements 
in  Central  Texas,  Bur.  Plant  Indus.  Bui.  13.  1902. 

3.  Blankenship,  J.  W.  Range  Improvement,  Montana 
Experiment  Sta.  Rp.,  pp.  71-75,  1902. 

4.  Cotton,  J.  S.  Range  Management  in  the  State  of 
Washington;  U.  S.  D.  A.,  Bur.  Plant  Indus.  Bui.  75,  1905. 

5.  Cotton,  J.  S.  The  Improvement  of  Mountain  Mea- 
dows; Bur.  Plant  Indus.  Bui.  127,  1908. 

6.  Cotton,  J.  S.  Range  Management;  U.  S.  D.  A. 
Yearbook,  pp.  225-238,  1906. 

7.  Davy,  J.  B.  Stock  Ranges  of  Northwestern  Cali- 
fornia. Bur.  Plant  Indus.  Bui.  12, 1902. 


18 


A STUDY  OF  GRAZING  CONDITIONS 


8.  Forbes,  R.  H.  Range  Improvement  and  Adminis- 
tration. U.  S.  D.  A.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  115,  pp.  85-86,  1901. 

9.  Griffiths,  David.  Forage  Conditions  and  Problems 
in  Eastern  Washington,  Eastern  Oregon,  Northeastern  Calif- 
ornia and  Northwestern  Nevada;  B.  P.  I.  Bui.  38,  1903. 

10.  Griffiths,  David.  The  Reseeding  of  Depleted  Range 
and  Native  Pastures;  U.  S.  D.  A.,  B.  P.  I.  Bui. 117,  1907. 

11.  Kennedy,  P.  B.  A Preliminary  Report  on  the  Sum- 
mer Ranges  of  Western  Nevada;  Nev.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  51,  1901. 

12.  Piper,  C.  V.  Flora  of  Washington.  Contributions 
from  the  National  Herbarium.  Vol.  XL,  1906. 

13.  Sampson,  A.  W.  Grazing  Lands.  Forest  Service, 
Cir.  169,  1909. 

14.  Sampson,  A.  W.  The  Revegetation  of  Overgrazed 
Range  Areas,  Preliminary  Report.  Forest  Service,  Cir.  158, 
1908. 

15.  Thornber,  J.  J.  The  Grazing  Ranges  of  Arizona; 
Ariz.  Ex.  Sta.  Bui.  65,  1910. 

16.  U.  S.  D..  A.,  Forest  Service.  Revised  Regulations  and 
Instructions  in  Reference  to  Grazing. 

17.  Wooton,  E.  0.  The  Range  Problem  in  New  Mexico; 
N.  Mex.  Exp.  Sta.,  Bui.  66,  1908. 


Fig.  1.  Typical  scenery  in  the  yellow  pine  zone,  which  is  from 
1800  to  3300  feet  above  sea-level.  The  characteristic  tree  is  yellow 
pine  {Pinus  Ponderosa) . R.  H.  Jackson’s  outfitting  camp  on  Tu- 
canon  Creek. 


Fig.  2.  Sheep  feeding  in  the  morning  on  a south  slope  at  Tal- 
low Flat,  in  the  Canadian  zone.  The  picture  shows  a small  area  of 
bunch  grass,  which  is  occasionally  found  on  sunny  slopes  in  this  zone. 


Fig.  3.  One  of  the  highways  of  the  sheep  in  the  Hudsonian  zone. 
The  latter  are  shown  here  moving  to  another  camp.  Parts  of  this 
trail  are  very  rough  and  pack  horses  find  difficulty  in  going  over  it. 
No  place  is  too  rough  for  the  sheep. 


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P'ig.  4.  This  picture  shows  the  usual  shrubby  type  of  vegetation 
on  which  the  sheep  browse.  See  pp  10-11  of  report  for  enumeration 
of  shrubby  vegetation. 


Fig.  5.  A “glade"  in  the  Hudsonian  zone.  The  Alpine  fir  is  the 
predominant  tree.  The  picture  shows  one  of  the  occasional  “burns” 
found  here.  This  is  a difficult  place  in  which  to  herd  sheep. 


l^ig,  b.  ihis  IS  a closer  view  of  the  ridge  shown  in  Fig.  3.  The 
plant  on  the  slope  in  the  foreground,  which  looks  like  a species  of 
sagebrush  in  the  picture,  is  a species  of  Pentstemon  for  which  the 
sheep  do  not  care. 


Fig-.  7.  Browsing  on  a steep  slope  in  the  Hudsonian  zone.  It  is 
probably  1500  yards  to  the  bottom  of  this  slope,  but  the  sheep  will 
not  go  down  more  than  about  500  yards.  The  picture  was  taken  in  the 
evening  when  the  sheep  were  returning  to  their  bedding  ground, 
which  is  on  the  level  part  of  the  ridge  at  their  right. 


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STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 
PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  SOIL  PHYSICS 


Time  and  Method  of  7 illage  on  the  Yield 
and  Comparative  Co^  of  Produdtion  of 
Wheat  in  the  Palouse  Region  of 
Ea^ern  Washington 

— by— 

0.  C.  THOM,  SoU  Physicist 
— and — 

H.  F.  HOLTZ,  Assistant  Soil  Physicist 


BULLETIN  No.  123 
July,  1915 


All  BuUetins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  the  Director 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  College),  Secretary  ex-officio.  . .Pullman 

James  C.  Cunningham  Spokane 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

R.  C.  McCroskey  Garfield 


EXPERIMENT  STATION  STAFF 


Tra  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D. . 
Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A. . , 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M. . 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D, 

O.  M,  Morris,  M.  S. . . . 
Geo.  Severance,  B.  S. . 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S. . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S. . . 

W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E.  G.  Shafer,  M.  S. . . 
Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

P.  D.  Heald,  Ph?  D 

C.  A.  Magoon,  M.  A. . . 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S. . 
Henry  P.  Holtz,  M.  S. . 
E.  P.  Gaines,  M.  S. . . . 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S. . . 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S. . . . 

H.  M.  Woolman 

P.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A,  L.  Sherman,  B.  S, . 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

. . . . Assistant  Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

. . . .Assistant  Entomologist  .. 
. . . . Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist  l 

. .Assistant  in  Horticulture  , 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist  , 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist  \ 

. . . Assistant  Horticulturist  . 
Assistant  Chemist 


TIME  AND  METHOD  OP  TILLAGE  ON  THE  YIELD  AND 
OOMPARTIVE  COST  OF  PRODUCTION  OF  WHEAT 
IN  THE  POLOUSE  REGION  OF  EASTERN 
WASHINGTON 

By  C’.  C.  THOM,  Soil  Physicist 
and 

H.  ¥.  HOl/TZ,  Assistant  Soil  Physicist 


This  experiment  is  being  conducted  to  determine  the  relative 
merits,  for  wheat  production,  of: 

Fall  plowing  vs.  spring  plowing  of  summar-f allow  land; 

Fall  plowing  vs.  fall  disking  and  spring  plowing  of  summer- 
fallow  land; 

Early  vs.  late  spring  plowing  of  summer-fallow  land; 

Sub-surface  packing  vs.  not  packing  of  early  spring  plowing 
of  summer-fallow  land; 

Packing  vs.  not  packing  late  spring  plowing  of  summer- 
fallow  land; 

Disking  vs.  not  disking  before  late  spring  plowing  of 
summer-fallow  land; 

Early  vs.  late  spring  tillage  of  fall  plowed  land  for  summer- 
fallow  ; 

Wheat  first  year  and  summer-fallow  the  next  year  vs.  wheat 
first  year  and  corn  the  next  year ; 

Wheat  the  first  year  and  summer-fallow  the  next  year  vs. 
wheat  the  first  year  and  field  peas  the  next  year ; 

Wheat  the  first  year  and  summer-fallow  the  next  year  vs. 
wheat  the  first  year  and  volunteer,  used  for  pasture  the  next 
year. 

A tract  of  land  having  a uniform  soil,  of  great  depth  and  a 
gentle  slope  to  the  southward,  was  chosen.  There  is  no  possi- 
bility of  surface  or  sub-surface  drainage  from  adjacent  lands 
to  this  area.  The  differences  in  yields  on  the  plats  are  due 
entirely  to  time  and  method  of  tillage. 

That  the  soil  might  be  as  free  as  possible  from  the  influences 
of  methods  of  tillage  of  former  years,  the  whole  tract  was 


plowed  and  planted  to  winter  wheat  early  in  October,  1911. 
No  record  of  the  yield  of  wheat  was  taken  in  1912,  hut  as  soon 
as  the  crop  was  removed  the  area  was  laid  out  in  one-tenth 
acre  plats  and  the  work  of  the  experiment  began.  Strict 
account  of  all  operations  performed  was  kept  and  charged 
for  at  the  following  rates : 


Plowing  $1.50  per  acre 

Disking 60  “ “ 

Harrowing 20  “ 

Packing 50  “ “ 

Seeding 40  “ “ 

Binding  and  shocking  wheat  1.35  “ 

Cultivating  corn 50  “ “ 

Harvesting  corn 2.00  “ “ 

Corn  for  seed  30  “ “ 

Peas  for  seed  1.60  “ “ 

Harvesting  peas  .• 2.00  “ “ 

Threshing  wheat  and  peas 10  per  bu. 


Such  matters  as  rent,  taxes,  the  cost  of  wheat  for  seed,  the  ; 
cost  of  sacks,  the  cost  of  treating  for  smut,  and  the  cost  of  ' 
hauling  to  market,  all  of  which  vary  more  or  less  between  farms  , 
and  between  communities,  have  not  been  taken  into  considera-  ' 
tion  in  figuring  costs.  The  costs  as  here  given  serve  only  as  ; 
a dollar  and  cents  basis  of  comparison  of  the  merits  of  the  • 
methods  of  tillage  that  were  followed.  ; 

HOW  THE  PLOTS  WERE  TREATED  i 

i 

Plot  I.  I 

Plowed  Nov.  1,  1912.  ^ 

Disked  April  3,  1913.  ^ 

Harrowed  April  22,  1913.  \ 

Planted  to  corn  May  7,  1913. 

Cultivated  corn  June  14,  and  July  6,  1913. 

Harvested  corn  Sept.  25,  1913. 

Yield — shelled  corn,  30  bu.  per  acre, 
dry  fodder  1 ton  per  acre. 

Plowed  and  disked  Oct.  6,  1913. 

Harrowed  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  143,  Oct,  14,  1913. 

Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  37.8  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Corn,  30  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $24.00 

Corn  fodder,  1 ton  at  $2  per  ton 2.00 

Wheat  37.8  bu.  at  80c  per  bu 30.24 


Gross  returns  $66.24 

Costs 13.66 


Net  returns  $42.69 


Plot  II. 

Plowed  Nov.  1.  1912. 

Disked  April  3,  1913. 

Harrowed  and  planted  to  peas  April  22,  1913. 

Harvested  peas  Aug.  10,  1913. 

Yield  of  peas  32  bu.  per  acre. 

Plowed  and  disked  Oct.  6,  1913. 

Harrowed  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  143,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  33.7  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Peas,  32  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $25.60 

Wheat,  33.7  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $26.96 

Gross  returns  $52.66* 

Costs 17.35 

Net  returns $35.21 


Plot  in. 


Plowed  Nov.  1,  1912. 

Disked  April  3,  and  May  7,  1913. 

Harrowed  April  22  and  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat,  Hybrid  143,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  49.4  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  49.4  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $39.60 

Costs 10.05 

Net  returns $29. 4S 


Plot  IV. 

Plowed,  packed,  and  disked  April  3,  1913. 

Disked  May  7,  1913. 

Harrowed  April  22  and  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  143,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29.  1914, 

Yield  of  wheat  49  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  49.0  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $39.20 

Costs 10.55 

Net  returns $28.66 


Plot  V. 

Plowed  and  disked  April  3,  1913. 

Disked  May  7,  1913. 

Harrowed  April  22  and  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  143,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914, 

Yield  of  wheat  61.7  bu.  per  acre. 


ttesults 


Wheat,  51.7  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $41.30 

Costs 10.35 

Net  returns $31. 01 


Plot  VI. 

Left  grow  to  volunteer  and  pastured  during  season  of  1913. 
Plowed  and  disked  Oct.  6,  1913. 

Harrowed  and  planted  to  wheat,  Hybrid  14  3,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  20.2  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  20.2  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $16.16 

Pasture  at  $1  per  acre 1.00 

Gross  returns  . . . ; $17.16 

Costs , 6.15 

Net  returns $11.01 


Plot  vn. 

Plowed,  packed  and  disked  June  10,  1913. 

Harrowed  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat,  Hybrid  143,  Oct.  14.  1913. 
Yield  of  wheat  38.5  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  38.5  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $31.00 

Costs 8.80 

Net  returns $22.20 


Plot  vm 

Plowed  and  disked  June  10,  1913. 

Harrowed  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  14  3,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  36.6  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  36.6  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu . .$29.28 

Costs 8.05 

Net  returns  $21.23 


Plot  IX. 

Disked  April  3,  1913. 

Plowed,  packed  and  disked  June  10,  1913. 

Harrowed  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  143,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  42.4  bu.  per  acre. 


-Itearalti-” ' 


Wheat,  42.4  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $33.92 

Costs 9.70 

Net  returns $24.22 


Plot  X. 

Disked  Nov.  1,  1912. 

Plowed,  packed  and  disked  June  10,  1913. 

Harrowed  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat,  Plybrid  143,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  what  37.3  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  37.3  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $29.84 

Costs 9.20 

Net  returns $20.64 


Plot  XI. 

Plowed  Nov.  1,  1912. 

Disked  June  10,  1913. 

Harrowed  July  6,  1913. 

Disked  and  planted  to  wheat.  Hybrid  14  3,  Oct.  14,  1913. 
Harvested  wheat  July  29,  1914. 

Yield  of  wheat  49.7  bu.  per  acre. 

Results 


Wheat,  49.7  bu.,  at  80c  per  bu $39.76 

Costs 9.45 


Net  returns $30,31 


It  should  be  noted  that: 

All  plots  received  like  cultivation  on  the  same  date. 

All  plots  were  seeded  on  the  same  date. 

All  plots  were  seeded  to  the  same  variety  of  wheat. 

All  plots  were  harvested  on  the  same  date. 

It  is  a two-year  rotation. 

The  comparative  net  returns  are  for  two  years. 

The  following  tabulation  presents  these  same  results  in  much 
better  form  for  comparison : 


No.  of  plot . . . 

How  Treated 

Yield  in  bu. 

per  acre.  . . 

Gross  returns 
per  acre . . . 

Cost 

per  acre . . . 

Net  returns 
per  acre.  .‘. 

1. 

Corn  and  wheat  alternating, 

fall  plowed  each  year. 

corn  30.0 
wheat  37.8 

$56.24 

$13.65 

$42.59 

2. 

Peas  and  wheat  alternating, 
fall  plowed  each  year. 

peas  32.0 
wheat  33.7 

52.56 

17.35 

35.21 

3. 

Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 

fall  plowed  after  wheat. 

wheat  49.4 

39.50 

10.05 

29.45 

4. 

Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 
early  spring  plowing,  April  3, 
packed. 

wheat  49.0 

39.20 

10.55 

28.65 

5, 

Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 
early  spring  plowing,  April  3, 
not  packed. 

wheat  51.7 

41.36 

10.35 

31.01 

6. 

Wheat  and  volunteer, 

volunteer  used  for  pasture, 
fall  plowed  after  volunteer. 

wheat  20.2 

17.16 

6.15 

11.01 

7. 

W'^heat  and  summer  fallow, 
late  spring  plowing,  June  10, 
packed. 

wheat  38.5 

31.00 

8.80 

22.20 

8. 

Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 
late  spring  plowing,  June  10, 

1 not  packed. 

wheat  36.6 

29.28 

8.05 

21.23 

9. 

1 Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 

1 early  spring  disked,  April  3, 

late  spring  plowing,  June  10, 

1 packed. 

wheat  42.4 

33.92 

9.70 

24.22 

10, 

1 Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 

1 fall  disked, 

j late  spring  plowing,  June  10, 

packed. 

wheat  37.3 

29.84 

9.20 

20.64 

11. 

1 Wheat  and  summer  fallow, 

1 fall  plowed, 

1 late  spring  disking,  June  10. 

wheat  49.7 

39.76 

9.45 

30.31 

As  these  are  the  results  of  hut  one  test  the  writers  are  not 
justified  in  drawing  any  definite  conclusions,  but  the  reader’s 
attention  is  directed  to,  and  he  is  asked  to  carefully  compare 

1st — Plots  1,  2 and  3.  Continuous  cropping  vs.  summer-fallow. 
2nd — Plots  4 and  6.  Packing  vs.  not  packing  of  early  spring  plowing. 
3rd — Plots  7 and  8.  Packing  vs.  not  packing  of  late  spring  plowing. 
4th — Plots  4 and  5,  with  7 and  8.  Early  vs.  late  spring  plowing. 
5th — Plots  7 and  9.  Disking  vs.  not  disking  before  late  spring 
plowing. 

6th — Plots  10  and  11.  Fall  plowing  vs.  fall  disking, 

7 th — Plot  6 vs,  any  other  plot. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 
PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON. 


Division  of  Entomology 
and  Zoology 


Bud  Weevils  and  Other  Bud-eating 
Insets  of  Washington 

By 

M.  A.  Yothers,  Assistant  Entomologist. 


BULLETIN  NO.  124 
February,  1916 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on, 
application  to  Director 


Board  of  Conirol. 


E.  T.  Coman,  President .Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  "Walla 

E.  O.  Holland  (President  of  the  College)  Secretary  ex-officio  Pullman 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 

D.  S.  Troy  Chimacum 

J.  C.  Cunningham  Spokane 


Experiment  Station  Staff 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D.  . 
Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A... 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M . . . 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D. 
O.  M.  Morris,  M.  S.  . . . 
Geo.  Severance,  S.  . 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S.  . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S.  . . . 
W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S.  .'. 

Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D.  . . . 
C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B.  . . , 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 
M.  A.  McCall,  M.  S.  . . . 
J.  S.  Caldwell,  Ph.  D.  . 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S.  . . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  MS... 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S.  . . . 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S.  . . 
M.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S. 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

» . . . Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

, . . . By-products  Specialist 
, . . . Assistant  Entomologist 
. . . .Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. . Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
. . . Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

. . Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


errata. 


Pages,' 

Page  : ^oederces,”  read  “Geoderce.s.” 

” ‘‘'^'tonia,”  read  “Sitona.” 

4.  line  5,  for  “.34,”  read  “.33”; 

4,  line  6,  for  “3.5“  read  “34.”; 

“^‘'‘drilineatiis,”  read  qnadri- 
h 25,  last  nund,er  in  table  No.  4,  for  “6,”  read  “0”; 

r “have”  read  “ha.s”; 

"" ''RtneToSo^'  “Rhyncophora”  read 

Re  II.,  Fiff.  1,  for  “lobia-eriu.s”  read  “lobigerinu.s.” 


CONTENTS. 


Introduction  5 

Subject  defined 5 

Nature  and  extent  of  injury 5 

General  distribution  of  species  studied  6 

List  of  species  studied  6 

Food  plants  of  the  several  species 7 

Earliest  and  latest  dates  weevils  were  collected 8 

Methods  of  control  - 10 

Cercopeus  artemisiae  12 

Cleonus  lobigerinus  and  Cleonus  quadrilineatus .’14 

Goederces  melanothrix  15 

Melamomphus  luteus  16 

Melamomphus  nigrescens  18 

Mimetes  setulosus  18 

Laboratory  notes  on  Mimetes 20 

Mylacus  saccatus  ..21 

Panscopus  aequalis  21 

Oviposition  in  the  laboratory ; 25 

Incubation  of  eggs  in  the  laboratory : 25 

Experiments  with  adult  weevils  in  the  laboratory 26 

Panscopus  sulcirostris 27 

Sitonia  apacheana  27 

Tosastes  cinerascens  28 

General  remarks  28 

Nature  and  extent  of  injury  28 

Distribution 29 

Food  plants  29 

Life  history 

Eggs 29 

Number  of  eggs  per  female  30 

Oviposition  of  eggs  in  the  laboratory 30 

Comparative  length  of  life  of  adults  in  laboratory  31 

Life  of  adult  weevils  32 


Miscellaneous  field  notes 

Action  with  reference  to  light 32 

Copulation  33 

Manner  of  feeding  of  adult  weevils  33 

Distribution  of  weevils  in  an  orchard 34 

Table  showing  the  comparative  number  of  the  two 

sexes  35 

Tricolepsis  sp 35 

Tychius  lineellus 35 

Species  of  bud  eating  beetles  other  than  weevils. 

Cotalpa  granicollis  35 

Eusattus  muricatus  36 

Glyptoscelis  alternata  37 

Polyphylla  decemlineata 38 

Syneta  albida 39 

Summary 41 

Bibliography  42 

Explanation  of  plates 45,  47,  49,  51,  53,  55 

Plates  illustrating  the  various  species,  etc  45,  47,  49,  51,  53,  55 


BUD  WEEVILS  AND  OTHER  BUD  FEEDING  INSECTS  OF 
WASHINGTON. 

By 

M.  A.  Yothers,  Assistant  Entomologist. 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  present  paper  contains  miscellaneous  notes  on  the  life 
history  and  habits  of  certain  species  of  Rhynchophora  and 
other  insects  which  have  been  found  injuring  the  buds-  of 
fruit  trees  in  Washington.  Field  studies  of  the  various 
species  were  pursued  for  two  weeks  in  the  spring  of  1911,  and 
one  month  in  the  spring  of  1912.  These  records  therefore 
are  incomplete  and  do  not  attempt  to  give  full  information 
for  any  species.  They  are  presented  merely  as  a preliminary 
record  of  studies  thus  far.  The  investigations  were  discon- 
tinued in  1912,  when  satisfactory  control  measures  were  dis- 
covered. 

Beginning  with  the  year  1909  more  or  less  complaint  was 
made  by  the  orchardists  throughout  the  central  part  of  the 
state  of  certain  small  insects  found  devouring  the  buds  of 
young  fruit  trees.  A number  of  different  species  'sent  to  the 
Experiment  Station  from  time  to  time,  proved  to  be  little 
known  and  others  entirely  new  to  science.  Practically  noth- 
ing was  known  of  the  life  history  and  habits  of  any  of  the 
species,  and  it  was  necessary  to  base  recommendations  for 
control  upon  knowledge  of  other  more  or  less  related,  known 
species. 

Investigations  upon  these  insects  were  begun  at  Prosser, 
Washington,  in  1911,  where  they  had  first  been  reported  as 
present  in  damaging  numbers.  It  was  soon  found  that  sev- 
eral of  the  species  were  native  feeders  on  the  sage,  Artemisia 
tridentata,  which  is  the  principal  plant  in  Those  districts 
where  the  weevils  were  found.  Under  natural  conditions  the 
weevils  live  on  the  sage,  but  when  it  is  cleared  from  the 
land  and  fruit  trees  are  set  out  in  its  place,  they  feed  upon 
the  new  plants  as  their  only  available  food. 

Our  studies  showed  that  in  so  far  as  the  true  bud  weevils 
are  concerned  the  boundaries  of  the  Upper  Sonoran  Zone  in 
Washington  are  the  approximate  limits  of  their  distribution. 


6 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


The  injury  caused  by  the  various  species  of  weevils  and 
other  bud  feeding  insects  is  considerable  when  all  is  taken 
into  consideration.  Sometimes  every  bud  is  eaten  out  by  the 
insects  and  the  trees  die  or  do  not  get  a start  after  they  are 
planted.  Sometimes  only  a few  of  the  buds  are  destroyed  and 
the  trees  are  able  to  maintain  themselves.  In  some  orchards 
it  was  found  that  as  many  as  half  of  the  young  trees  were 
killed,  but  this  was  an  unusually  high  per  cent,  although  it 
was  not  uncommon  to  find  new  plantings  with  a loss  of 
twenty  per  cent. 

The  studies  were  carried  on  in  1911  at  Wenatchee,  Brew- 
ster, Okanogan  and  Omak.  In  1912  studies  were  continued  at 
Kennewick,  Benton  City,  Hanford,  White  Bluffs,  Wenatchee, 
Orondo,  Chelan,  Chelan  Falls,  Lakeside,  Brewster,  Okanogan, 
Omak,  Riverside,  Tonasket  and  Oroville. 

The  following  is  a list  of  the  various  species  investigated: 

Rhynchophora — 

Cercopeus  artemisiae  Pierce. 

Cleonus  lobigerinus  Casey 
Cleonus  quadrilineatus  Chev. 

Geoderces  melanothrix  Kirby 
Melamomphus  luteus  Horn 
Melamomphus  nigrescens  Pierce 
Mimetes  setulosus  Schoen. 

Mylacus  saccatus  Leconte 
Panscopus  aequalis  Horn 
Panscopus  sulcirostris  Pierce 
Sitona  apacheana  Casey 
Tosastes  cinerascens  Pierce 
Tricolepsis  sp. 

Tychius  lineellus  Leconte 

Other  beetles — 

Cotalpa  granicollis  Hald. 

Eusattus  muricatus  Leconte. 

Glyptoscelis  alternata  Crotch. 

Polyphylla  decemlineata  Say 
Syneta  albida  Leconte. 


other  bud-feeding-  beetles  occur. 


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BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


Table  No.  2,  showing  the  earliest  and  latest  dates  at 
which  several  specimens  were  collected.  Inasmuch  as  the  wee- 
vils were  studied  only  at  the  spring  season  these  dates  show 
only  at  about  what  time  they  could  be  found.  At  this  time 
of  year  they  were  at  least  most  abundant. 


Name  of  species 

Locality  and  earliest 
date 

Locality  and  latest 
date 

Cercopeus  artemisiae. 
Geoderces  melanothrix 
Melamomphus  luteus. . 
Melamomphus  nigres- 
r.ftns 

Prosser,  March  28,  1911 
Puyallup,  March  8,  1911 
Prosser,  April  1,  1910 

Riparia,  March  22,  1911 
Tonasket,  March  31, 
1911 

Okanogan,  Apr.  14,  1911 
Riparia,  March  22,  1911 

Oroville,  May  10,  1912 
Puyallup,  Mar.  16,  1911 
Mission,  May  5,  1911 

Riparia,  Mar.  22,  1911 

Oroville,  May  11,  1912 
Wawawai,  May  14,  1912 
Oroville,  May  11,  1912 

Mimetes  setulosus 

Panscopus  aequalis.  . . . 
Tosastes  cinerascens.  . . 

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10 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


METHODS  OF  CONTROL. 

Table  No.  3 gives  in  a concise  form  the  various  remedies 
tried  against  the  weevils  and  other  bud  feeders.  No  experi- 
mental control  work  was  undertaken  by  us  but  our  recom- 
mendations are  based  largely  upon  the  results  obtained  by 
responsible  orchardists  and  upon  our  observations  of  the  ef- 
ficiency of  the  methods  used  as  v/e  found  them  in  our  field 
studies.  Some  additional  control  measures  are  given  under 
the  discussion  of  the  various  species. 

A large  number  of  testimonials  as  to  the  efficiency  of  the 
various  methods  of  control  could  have  been  given  in  the 
table,  but  the  ones  selected  represent  more  the  opinions  of 
the  managers  and  superintendents  of  large  orchard  com- 
panies, some  of  whom  have  thousands  of  acres  under  their 
charge,  and  are  therefore  more  authoritative.  Judging  from 
the  results  obtained  by  a number  of  the  larger  companies 
and  many  individual  orchardists  with  the  use  of  the  paper 
cone  tree  protectors  (Figs.  1,’  2),  there  is  little  doubt  but  that 
they  are  the  most  effective  and  practicable  means  of  pro- 


Fig.  1.  Showing  the  manner  of  cutting  the  paper  for  making  the 
paper  cone  tree  protector.  The  dimensions  are  approximately  10 
inches  wide  at  the  base,  6 inches  tail  and  3 inches  wide  at  the  top. 
About  one-sixth  natural  size. 


tecting  the  trees  against  the  weevils.  The  paper  cones  are 
effective  not  only  against  the  weevils  but  also  against  the 
climbing  cutworms,  thus  serving  a double  purpose  that  is  of 
great  importance  to  the  orchardist.  The  cones  are  also  much 
more  permanent  than  any  of  the  other  remedies,  for  once  put 
on  the  trees  in  the  spring  they  will,  with  but  little  adjust- 
ment, prevent  the  ravages  of  the  weevils  and  the  cutworms 
throughout  the  entire  season. 

The  paper  cones  are  made  of  heavy  paper  that  will  with- 
stand to  a considerable  extent  the  influences  of  wind,  sun  and 
moisture.  The  papers  are  cut  in  the  shape  indicated  in  Fig.  1, 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


11 


and  according  to  the  dimensions  given.  As 
the  paper  cones  are  used  on  one-  or  two-year- 
old  trees,  and  for  this  size  these  dimensions 
are  recommended,  but  if  the  cones  are  to  be 
used  on  larger  trees  the  size  of  the  cones  will 
have  to  be  increased  accordingly.  When  the 
papers  are  cut  and  ready  to  be  placed  on  the 
trees  each  is  smeared  on  one  side  with  a three- 
or  four-inch  band  of  “tanglefoot”  which  should 
not  reach  to  the  lower  or  broad  edge  of  the 
paper  on  account  of  making  it  difficult  to 
handle.  A small  pinch  of  cotton  is  then  placed 
about  the  trunk  of  the  tree  about  eight  inches 
from  the  ground.  The  paper  is  then  placed 
carefully  about  the  tree,  with  the  tanglefoot 
inside,  in  the  shape  of  a cone  with  the  broad 
end  below  and  about  three  or  four  inches  from 
the  ground,  and  the  small  end  about  the  cot- 
ton. In  order  to  fasten  the  paper  together  it 
should  be  pinned  in  the  manner  indicated  in 
the  figure.  The  purpose  of  the  cotton  is  to 
protect  the  tender  tree  from  injury  by  the 
edge  of  the  paper,  and  also  to  insure  a more 
perfect  union  of  tree  and  protector.  The  paper 
cone  is  shown  in  position  about  a young  tree 
in  Fig.  2. 

The  best  manner  of  cutting  the  heavy 
paper  for  the  'cones  is  shown  in  Fig.  1.  The 
proper  dimensions  for  the  different  sides  of 
the  papers  are  given  and  when  cut  according 
to  this  method  the  papers  will  be  uniform  in 
size  and  there  will  be  the  least  possible  waste 
of  material. 

The  weevils  may  begin  to  destroy  the 
buds  within  a few  hours  after  the  young  trees 
are  planted,  therefore  the  cone  protectors 
should  be  applied  immediately  after  the  trees 
are  set,  thus  insuring  complete  protection 
from  the  beginning.  With  a little  care  and 
attention  to  the  adjustment  of  the  cones  they 
will  give  protection  throughout  the  first  sea- 
son which  is  usually  as  long  as  is  necessary 
for  protection  against  these  weevils  since 
they  do  not  often  injure  older  trees. 


a usual  thing 


Fig.  2.  Showing 
one  of  the  paper 
cone  protectors 
in  position  on 
a young  tree. 
About  one-third 
natural  size. 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


CERCOPEUS  ARTEMISIAE  Pierce. 

(Plate  L,  Fig  7). 

This  weevil  is  the  smallest  of  those  found  infesting  the 
buds  of  young  fruit  trees  in  this  State.  It  is  also  considerably 
less  important  than  most  of  the  other  species  although  not 
the  least  by  any  means.  Its  distribution  is  about  the  same  as 
that  of  Mimetes  setulosus,  '1  osastes  cinerascens  and  the  chry- 
somelid,  Glyptoscelis  alternata.  Wherever  the  common  sage- 
brush, Artemisia  tridentata  grows  in  the  valley  of  the  Co- 
lumbia River  and  its  principal  tributaries  these  weevils  are 
found.  It  has  been  found  on  Artemisia  tridentata  in  Mon- 
tana and  was  originally  named  and  described  from  specimens 
collected  m that  State. 

The  work  of  this  species  on  the  sage  is  quite  noticeable 
and  readily  distinguishable  from  that  of  the  other  species  of 
weevils.  When  feeding  it  pierces  tmy  holes  through  the  leaves 
of  the  plant  and  these  holes  are  often  so  abundant  that 
they  occupy  almost  the  entire  surface  of  the  leaves.  These 
feeding  punctures  are  about  the  size  of  pin  pricKs. 

In  most  cases  this  species  was  present  on  newly  planted 
and  one-year-old  fruit  trees  wherever  any  of  the  other  spe- 
cies of  weevils  were  present.  Apparently  the  weevils  are  very 
fond  of  sap  oozing  from  the  pruned  surfaces  of  twigs  and  also 
from  the  partly  eaten  buds.  Owing  to  this  fondness  for  the 
sap  they  may  very  commonly  be  found  on  the  cut  ends  of 
twigs  with  their  proboscides  stucK  into  tne  huhbles  oi  sap 
(Plate  111.,  Fig.  1).  They  are  also  frequently  found  in  the 
axils  of  the  buds  where  it  is  somewhat  difficult  to  distinguish 
them  owing  to  their  close  resemblance  in  color  to  the  bracts 
of  the  buds.  They  feed  in  the  daytime,  for  the  most  part  at 
least  in  the  early  morning  and  late  d,fternoon.  in  one 
orchard  they  were  not  to  be  found  at  4 o’clock  in  the  after- 
noon but  at  6 o’clock  they  were  plentiful,  three  or  four  being 
found  to  a tree.  During  a part  of  the  day  they  were  hiding 
in  the  cracks  in  the  soil  at  the  base  of  the  trees.  When  they 
are  on  the  tree  and  are  suddenly  disturbed  they  release  their 
hold  and  fall  to  the  ground  as  if  dead.  They  curl  their  legs 
up  close  to  the  body  when  they  hit  the  ground  and  it  is  then 
difficult  to  find  them.  They  seem  to  roll  nearly  always  into 
some  of  the  cracks  at  the  base  of  the  tree. 

There  seems  to  be  no  doubt  but  that  Cercopeus  artemis- 
iae  is  a native  of  the  sage  brush  country.  The  writer  has 
taken  it  from  sage  brush,  tridentata,  not  only  ad- 

jacent to  orchards  but  many  miles  from  any  planting.  They 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


13 


are  apparently  not  so  plentiful  on  saes’ebrush  as  on  the  fruit 
trees  but  that  is  explained  by  the  face  that  there  are  many 
hundreds  of  native  plants  to  the  acre  and  many  millions  of 
leaves  while  in  the  orchard  there  are  only  a very  few  slender 
twigs  and  very  few  buds  and  consequently  a few  hundred 
weevils  would  seem  all  too  plentiful  in  the  orchard  but  would 
be  practically  lost  in  the  sagebrush. 

Like  the  other  weevils  this  one  is  never  found  on  trees 
more  than  two  years  old  nor  on  land  more  than  two  years  re- 
moved from  the  native  state  as  by  that  time  they  are  either 
destroyed  or  driven  out  into  their  native  habitat.  In  fact  it 
is  more  than  probable  that  both  happens.  Many  of  them  must 
certainly  be  killed  by  the  intensive  process  of  cultivation 
which  is  usually  practiced  in  the  arid  regions  in  order  to  con- 
serve the  moisture  during  the  spring  until  irrigation  is  begun 
in  early  summer.  This  same  intensive  cultivation  possibly  at 
the  same  time  drives  many  of  the  weevils  b^^ck  into  the  sao-e- 
brush.  This  is  suggested  by  the  fact  that  the  weevils  are  al- 
ways many  times  more  abundant  at  the  edge  of  the  sagebrush 
where  it  adjoins  the  cultivated  land  than  they  are  either  in 
the  middle  of  the  sagebrush  or  the  middle  of  the  orchard. 
The  fact  that  their  color  so  closely  resembles  the  sagebrush 
is  additional  evidence  that  they  live  upon  this  plant  under 
normal  conditions. 

Cercopeus  ortemisiae  has  been  collected  on  the  buds  and 
^oung  leaves  of  apple,  peach,  pear  and  sage.  It  has  been  ob- 
served feeding  both  during  bright  sunlight  and  during  dark 
cloudy  weather. 

The  only  reference  in  literature  to  this  species  is  the  des- 
cription by  W.  D.  Pierce  (11  a)  of  the  Bureau  of  Entomology, 
Washington,  D.  C.,  and  the  note  which  he  appends  to  his  de- 
scription which  is,  presumably  from  a letter  written  by  R.  A. 
Cooley  of  Montana.'^  In  this  letter  Prof.  Cooley  states  that  the 
weevil  had  done  considerable  damage  over  large  tracts  of  new- 
ly planted  orchards  in  his  state.  It  was  especially  injurious  to 
cherry  trees  but  Prof.  Cooley  traced  it  to  the  sagebrush  and 
decided  that  it  was  a native  feeder  on  that  plant, 


'^Numbers  refer  to  literature  cited  in  bibliography. 


14 


liUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


CLEONUS  LOBIGERINUS  Casey.  , 

CLEONUS  QUADRILINEATUS  Chev. 

(Plate  II.,  Fig.  1)  and  (Plate  II.,  Fig.  2). 

Two  species  of  Cleonus  have  been  sent  in  by  frniP 
growers  a number  of  times  and  reported  as  injurious  to  buds 
of  young  fruit  trees.  Cleonus  lobicjerinus  C&sey  was  especi- 
ally destructive  to  apricot  buds  at  Okanogan  in  the  spring  of 
1909.  Both  cherry  and  apple  trees  on  either  side  of  the  apri- 
cots were  left.  This  species  has  been  collected  at  Okanogan, 
Brewster  and  Mission,  Washington.  It  is,  however,  so  scarce 
that  nothing  was  learned  of  its  life  history  and  habits. 

The  writer  found  specimens  of  Cleonus  quadrilineatvs 
Chev.  on  apple  trees  and  on  a species  of  Lupinus  at  Brewster, 
Washington,  in  April,  1912.  They  did  not  seem  to  be  very  des- 
tructive to  the  fruit  tree  buds  although  they  had  eaten  of 
them.  They  were  so  few  in  numbers  that  they  could  not  do 
much  harm. 

A species  very  similar  to  these  two  has  been  found  doing 
similar  damage  to  the  young  fruit  trees  in  Colorado  and  Utah. 
Prof.  C.  P.  Gillette  reported  that  the  species  found  there, 
Cleonus  canescens,  destroyed  the  buds  of  young  peach  and 
apple  trees  in  1908  and  1910.  At  Westlake,  Utah,  according  to 
this  writer  it  was  “present  in  considerable  numbers  on  eyery 
tree  examined.”  In  every  case  where  this  beetle  was  report- 
ed the  trees  were  newly  set  or  not  over  two  years  old  and  on 
virgin  soil. 

Figures  2 and  3 (Plate  III)  show  the  side  view  of  the 
head  of  the  two  species  found  in  Washington;  (2,  Cleonus  lohi- 
gerinus  Casey;  3,  Cleonus  quadrilineatus  Chev.) . 

Chittenden  (3)  refers  to  Cleonus  quadrilineatus  as  the 
“Four-Lined  Loco  Weeyil,”  stating  that  it  is  known  to  breed 
in  considerable  numbers  in  Aragalluslawherti  in  Colorado, 
doing  very  appreciable  injury  to  this  plant.  “Practically 
nothing  is  known  of  the  life  history  of  any  species  of  this 
genus  of  which  there  are  quite  a number.  The  beetles  are 
partial  to  Astragalus  and  Araqallus  and  feed  also  upon 
Lupinus  and  related  plants.  The  laryae  are  undoubtedly  root 
or  stalk  feeders.  The  present  species  in  the  laryal  stage 
forms  in  the  ground  in  comparatively  large  earthen  cocoons.” 

Wickham  (13,a)  refers  to  this  species  as  follows: 

“Found  at  ground  at  roots  of  low  plants  in  Arizona.** 

The  original  description  of  Cleonus  lobigerinvs  is  by 
Casey  (1,  b),  and  that  of  Cleonus  qadrilineatus  is  by  Chev- 
rolat  as  given  by  Horn  (6,  d). 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


15 


GEODERCES  MELANOTHRIX  Kirby. 

(Plate  I.,  Fig.  5). 

Early  in  March,  1911,  specimens  of  Gioderces  melano- 
thrix  Kirby  were  sent  to  the  department  of  Entomology 
from  Puyallup  with  the  information  that  they  were  destroy- 
ing the  leaf  buds  of  raspberry  canes.  During  a visit  to  this 
locality  in  March,  1911,  it  was  learned  that  the  weevils  were 
of  only  local  interest  and  not  at  all  to  be  considered 
a serious  pest.  Only  a small  plantation  was  found  affected. 
In  this  field  of  about  an  acre  most  of  the  buds  were  partly 
or  entirely  destroyed.  Although  a couple  of  hours  were 
spent  in  trying  to  find  the  weevils  feeding,  at  no  time  were 
any  of  them  observed  doing  so.  When  found  during  the  day 
time  they  were  always  in  hiding,  either  among  the  dead 
leaves  on  the  ground  or  secreted  between  the  canes  and  the 
posts  which  supported  them.  It  seems  quite  probable  that  this 
species  feeds  at  night.  The  soil  in  which  the  canes  were 
growing  was  very  sandy  and  had  been  under  cultivation 
about  twelve  years.  The  land  originally  supported  a very 
heavy  growth  of  cedar.  The  weevil  worked  only  on  the  Marl- 
borough and  Cuthbert  varieties.  It  m-^y  be  that  was  because 
the  Antwerps  are  a later  variety  and  were  not  in  the  proper 
condition  for  them.  The  owner  of  the  bushes  had  sprayed 
them  with  arsenate  of  lead  and  then  covered  them  with  lime. 
It  was  two  days  after  the  vines  had  been  thus  treated  that 
the  writer  examined  them.  No  evidence  was  seen  that  the 
weevils  had  eaten  any  of  the  buds  or  the  spray  mixture 
since  it  had  been  applied.  The  lime  was  still  on  the  buds  com- 
pletely covering  them.  Some  of  the  vines  which  were  not 
treated  showed  the  partly  eaten  buds,  but  it  was  impossible 
to  tell  how  recently  the  feeding  had  been  done. 

A considerable  portion  of  the  affected  berry  patch  had 
been  injured  the  previous  year.  Although  great  numbers  of 
the  weevils  had  been  present  in  this  patch  none  were  found 
in  either  of  the  adjoining  fields.  Th^  owner  of  the  place 
claimed  that  he  had  gathered  “about  a bushel”  of  the  weevils 
a short  time  before  the  writer  visited  him. 

Barnyard  manure  had  been  nlaced  about  the  bushes 
throughout  the  winter  and  about  these  it  was  almost  impos- 
sible to  find  the  weevils  owing  to  their  color  resemblance  to 
the  manure.  The  weevils  made  their  first  appearance  about 
March  7,  1911. 

No  further  study  of  this  speems  has  been  made  and  no 
additional  information  is  at  hand.  The  collected  specimens  are 


16 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


preserved  in  the  collection  of  the  State  College  of  Washing- 
ton. 

The  technical  description  of  this  species  is  given  by  Le- 
conte and  Horn  (10,  c). 

Mr.  W.  D.  Pierce  (11,  d)  mentions  the  distribution  of 
this  species  as  follows:  “Michipicoten  Island,  Lake  Superior, 
July;  Gargantus,  Lake  Superior,  August;  White  Fish  Point, 
Lake  Superior;  Marquette,  Michigan  July  10  (Hubbard  and 
Schwarz);  Bayfield,  Wisconsin  (Wickham);  Departure  Bay, 
Vancouver;  Massett,  Queen  Charlotte  Island,  British  Columbia 
(J.  H.  Keen).” 

MELAMOMPHUS  LUTEUS  Horn. 

(Plate  L,  Fig.  e3).  . 

This  species  was  first  reported  in  the  spring  of  1909  at 
Grandview,  Washington,  where  it  was  feeding  on  young  peach 
tree  buds.  In  the  spring  of  1910  it  was  reported  as  very 
abundant  and  destructive  at  Prosser,  Washington,  in  the  two 
hundred  acre  orchard  of  the  Northern  Pacific  Railway  Com- 
pany. At  that  place  it  was  especially  destructive  to  one-  and 
two-year-old  apple  and  pear  trees.  Specimens  were  sent  to 
the  Entomological  department  of  the  State  Experiment  Sta- 
tion for  determination.  Methoods  of  control  were  also  asked 
for. 

The  first  published  record  of  this  insect  was  by  Mr.  G.  M. 
Chase  (2,  a),  manager  of  the  Northern  Pacific  orchard  at 
Prosser.  According  to  Mr.  Chase  these  weevils  were  very  de- 
structive to  the  buds  of  the  young  trees.  So  serious  seemed 
the  injury  that  he  feared  for  the  safety  of  the  16,000  trees. 

In  discussing  the  habits  of  the  weevils.  Mr.  Chase  men- 
tioned that  they  go  into  the  cracks  of  the  soil,  making  it  very 
difficult  to  find  them  when  the  soil  is  disturbed.  As  many  as 
two  dozen  weevils  were  found  to  the  tree.  The  young  apple 
trees  were  more  severely  injured  than  were  the  pears  which 
had  not  been  pruned.  The  greater  the  abundance  of  buds 
the  less  was  the  injury.  Mr.  Chase  found  the  weevils  from 
the  first  of  March  to  the  middle  of  April. 

In  a second  paper  on  this  weevil  Chase  (2.  hi  states 
that  the  weevil  works  only  during  the  more  favorable  part 
of  the  day  and  night.  During  the  dav  it  likes  cloudy  weather 
best,  and  will  go  into  the  ground  if  the  weather  is  too  cold. 

Mr.  Kruger  (9),  who  has  made  some  observations  on  this 
species,  claims  that  the  weevil  works  only  in  the  mornings, 
especially  during  the  warm  days.  According  to  Mr.  Kruger, 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


17 


it  attacks  the  buds  and  the  bark  as  well  and  girdles  the  tree 
completely  at  the  top,  and  later  feeds  upon  the  leaves.  The 
weevil  may  be  found  commonly  at  the  base  of  the  trees.  By 
digging  carefully  it  may  be  found  adhering  to  lumps  of  dirt 
or  scattered  about  in  the  dirt  a couple  of  inches  beneath  the 
surface.  It  is  not  unusual,  according  to  Mr.  Kruger,  to  find 
forty  or  fifty  weevils  to  the  tree. 

It  seems  certain  that  this  species  is,  like  a number  of 
others,  a native  of  the  sagebrush,  Artemisia  spp.,  and  that  it 
is  more  or  less  generally  distributed  throughout  the  Upper 
Sonoran  Zone  in  Washington,  but  perhaps  more  confined  to 
the  southern  part  of  that  area. 

The  difference  between  the  males  and  the  females  is 
quite  noticeable  and  was  the  cause  of  much  of  the  confusion  in 
the  determination  of  the  species.  The  difference  caused  the 
two  sexes  to  be  placed  in  separate  genera  and  confusion  re- 
sulted. 


METHODS  OF  CONTROL. 

Mr.  Chase  (2,  a)  tried  to  control  the  weevils  by  spraying 
with  strong  arsenate  of  lead  and  also  with  sulphur  lime,  but 
found  neither  effective.  A ten  per  cent  solution  of  kerosene 
emulsion  then  tried  gave  him  perfect  results  on  16,000  trees, 
although  its  apparent  efficiency  may  have  been  due  to  the 
lateness  of  the  season,  the  weevils  having  already  disap- 
peared. 

Mr.  Kruger  of  North  Yakima,  who  also  made  observa- 
tions on  this  species,  claimed  (9)  that  either  kerosense 
emulsion  or  sulphur-lime  was  a good  treatment  for  its  control. 

Prof.  Thornber  (2,  a)  suggested  that  delayed  pruning 
would  tend  to  prevent  the  depredations  of  these  weevils  to 
a certain  extent  in  that  there  would  be  more  buds  on  the 
young  trees  for  them  to  feed  on  and  therefore  less  liklihood 
of  their  injuring  all  the  buds. 

Prof.  Melander  (2,  a)  has  suggested  controlling  the 
weevil  by  means  of  the  inverted  umbrella  as  employed  in 
other  parts  of  the  country  against  the  plum  curculio.  He 
also  stated  that  arsenicals  are  ineffective  as  a remedy  against 
the  weevils. 

In  our  correspondence  we  have  recommended  either  hand 
picking,  the  inverted  umbrella  or  the  paper  cone  tree  pro- 
tector as  methods  of  controlling  this  as  well  as  other  species 
of  weevils. 

Concerning  Melamomphus  luteus,  Pierce  (11,  h)  has  the 
following  to  say  in  his  discussion  of  the  American  weevils: 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


as 


“Melamomphus  luteus  Horn. 

(Tricomigus  luteus  Horn). 

“The  material  before  the  writer  which  most  nearly  an- 
swers the  description  of  this  species  is  the  female  series  froih 
Prosser,  Washington.  The  males  and  females  of  this  series 
collected  April  1,  1910,  and  transmitted  by  Mr.  M.  A.  Yothers, 
belong  in  different  genera  according  to  Horn’s  table.  The 
writer  has  selected  this  series  to  stand  for  Horn’s  species 
because  the  females  lack  a posterior  tibial  mucro  and  have 
the  first  abdominal  suture  somewhat  arcuate.  Specimens 
are  also  at  hand  from  Mission,  Washington,  May  5,  1911.” 

The  specimens  from  Mission,  Washington,  are  also  from 
the  Washington  Experiment  Station,  and  were  collected  by 
the  writer. 

The  original  description  of  this  species  is  by  Horn  (6,  a) 
and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  description  is  the  following  note: 
“Occurs  in  Bitter  Root  Valley  and  in  Colorado.” 

MELAMOMPHUS  NIGRESCENS  Pierce. 

(Plate  II.,  Fig  8). 

This  species  has  been  taken  at  only  one  place — Riparia, 
Washington.  On  the  22nd  of  March,  1911,  specimens  were 
sent  to  the  Department  of  Plntomology  for  determination. 
These  specimens  were  in  poor  condition,  most  of  them  being 
more  or  less  crushed.  They  were  reported  as  destructive  to 
the  buds  of  young  peach  and  apple  trees. 

The  only  information  extant  of  this  new  species  is  the 
note  and  description  by  Pierce  who  kindly  made  the  determin- 
ation (11,  g). 

MIMETES  SETULOSUS,  Schoenheer. 

(Plate  I.,  Fig.  2). 

This  is  the  most  abundant  and  one  of  the  two  most  in- 
jurious bud  weevils.  It  seems  to  have  a wider  distribution 
and  a larger  number  of  host  plants  than  any  of  the  other 
s])ecies.  It  is  found  throughout  the  valley  of  the  Columbia 
River  and  its  tributaries  within  the  Upper  Sonoran  Zone  in 
Washington.  It  has  been  taken  as  far  south  as  the  Yakima 
Valley,  and  as  far  north  as  Kaledon  and  Penticton,  British  Co- 
lumbia. 

It  feeds  in  its  native  state  on  the  sage,  Artemisia  tri- 
dertata,  and  no  doubt  breeds  in  or  about  this  plant  although 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


19 


this  point  has  never  been  determined.  The  life  history  of 
this  weevil  is  entirely  unknown  except  for  the  few  miscellane- 
ous notes  here  recorded  on  the  habits  of  the  adult.  It  feeds 
in  the  garden  and  orchard  on  apple,  peach,  pear,  currant, 
blackberry,  gooseberry  and  black  walnut.  In  its  natural  en- 
vironment it  feeds  on  wild  sunflower,  or  balsam  root,  Bal- 
samorrhiza  sagittata,  and  on  a species  of  Lupinus,  Like  other 
species  of  weevils  it  feeds  almost  altogether  on  the 
buds  of  the  one-  and  two-year-old  fruit  trees  during  the  three 
spring  months.  Being  both  larger  and  more  numerous  than 
Cercopeus  artemisiae,  with  which  it  is  closely  associated  it 
no  doubt  does  more  injury  than  that  species,  and  although 
not  so  large  as  Tosastes  cinerascens  it  is  at  least  as  abundant 
and  as  destructive.  No  distinctive  difference  has  been  notic- 
ed between  the  nature  of  the  injury  of  this  species  and  that 
caused  by  any  of  the  other  species.  They  eat  out  the  centers 
of  the  buds  as  do  all  the  other  species  and  when  the  inside  of 
the  bud  is  devoured  they  continue  feeding  until  nothing  of 
the  bud  remains.  If  food  is  scarce  they  will  eat  out  the  bud 
well  down  into  the  wood  leaving  a small  hole  where  the  bud 
had  been.  When  the  buds  are  eaten  out  in  this  manner  they 
seldom,  if  ever,  recover,  but  if  they  are  only  partly  destroyed 
they  often  put  out  new  buds  later  in  the  spring  or  more 
commonly  in  the  early  summer  and  thus  save  the  tree. 

This  species  is  about  the  size  and  shape  of  a grain  of 
wheat  only  slightly  more  slender.  It  is  of  a grayish  color, 
closely  resembling  the  gray  green  of  the  sage  and  the  gray 
pubescence  of  the  unopened  apple  tree  buds.  It  is  also  some- 
what the  color  of  the  sandy  soil  so  characteristic  of  the  sage- 
brush region,  and  when  it  is  disturbed  and  falls  to  the 
ground  one  often  has  some  little  difficulty  in  finding  it. 

In  many  of  the  one-  and  two-year-old  orchards  visited 
during  April,  1911,  and  April  and  May,  1912,  it  was  found  that 
many  of  the  trees  were  badly  eaten  by  this  weevil.  Some  of  the 
trees  had  no  buds  at  all  while  others  had  still  a bud  or  two 
left  on  the  trunk.  Sometimes  as  many  as  a dozen  weevils 
were  found  on  a single  tree.  It  was  no  uncommon  sight  to 
see  a weevil  with  its  head  and  proboscis  stuck  well  down  into 
the  hollowed  out  bud.  The  beetles  are  sometimes  found  in 
the  bottom  of  the  holes  dug  for  setting  trees  into,  and  it  is 
a common  supposition  that  the  weevils  live  down  in  the  soil 
to  the  depth  of  two  or  more  feet,  but  the  truth  of  the  matter 
is  that  the  weevils  either  fall  into  the  holes  when  they  are 
being  dug  or  else  afterwards.  They  are  also  found  some- 
times on  top  of  the  stakes  placed  in  the  ground  to  mark  the 


20 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


place  for  planting  the  trees.  One  must  look  closely  to  see 
them  when  there  for  they  are  much  the  color  of  the  weather- 
worn stakes.  It  is  of  interest  to  note  that  the  weevils  soon 
find  the  new  host  plant,  the  apple  or  the  other  fruit  tree,  and 
it  does  not  take  long  for  them  to  acquire  a taste  for  it.  The 
weevils  have  often  been  found  feeding  on  the  recently  pruned 
tips  of  apple  trees  which  had  not  been  planted  more  than  a 
few  hours.  In  certain  instances  they  may  be  found  on  land 
cleared  for  more  than  two  years,  but  in  such  cases  the  land 
has  not  been  thoroly  cleared.  An  instance  of  this  was  noticed 
at  Wenatchee  in  an  orchard  where  the  sage  brush  had  been 
cleared  off  several  years  before  the  trees  were  planted,  but  a 
few  bushes  had  been  allowed  to  remain  and  on  these  and  on 
the  fruit  trees  as  well  there  were  many  of  the  weevils. 

The  weevils  are  not  found  on  the  “bunch  grass’'  land  ad- 
joining the  sage  brush,  Artemisia  tridentata,  in  the  more 
northern  part  of  the  Upper  Sonoran  area.  Where  the  flora 
characteristic  of  this  region  gives  way  to  that  of  the  higher 
and  more  moist  lands  the  weevils  also  disappear.  This  fact 
was  determined  repeatedly  at  Brewster,  Riverside,  Chelan, 
Okanogan  and  Oroville. 

At  Wenatchee,  April  23,  1912,  many  of  the  weevils  were 
found  on  the  balsam  Tooi,Balsamorrhizasagittata3J].di  judging 
from  the  great  number  of  holes  in  the  heads  of  the  flowers 
the  beetles  had  been  feeding  on  them. 

At  Chelan,  April  27,  1912,  many  of  the  weevils  were  found 
on  sagebrush  just  at  the  edge  of  town  while  a slow,  drizzling 
rain  was  beginning.  It  was  just  dusk  and  one  could  not  tell 
whether  or  not  they  were  feeding,  but  it  seemed  peculiar  to 
find  them  in  full  view  at  dusk  in  the  rain. 

Mr.  Royce,  of  near  Riverside,  found  some  of  the  weevils 
very  early  in  the  spring  on  the  snow.  He  first  took  them  for 
ticks  but  soon  found  that  they  were  the  beetles  he  had  seen 
the  spring  before. 

Laboratory  Notes  on  Mimetes  setulosus. 

With  a lot  of  weevils  from  Brewster,  collected  May  1 and 
examined  May  14,  were  many  elongate,  cylindrical  black 
eggs  almost  hidden  in  the  pubescence  of  sunflower  leaves, 
stems  and  heads.  Some  of  these  eggs  were  also  found  on  the 
sage  leaves  (Plate  111.,  Fig.  4).  It  is  not  certain  that  these 
eggs  are  those  of  M.  setulosus  for  they  were  on  the  leaves  be- 
fore they  were  placed  in  the  jar.  Some  small,  white  larvae 
hatched  from  the  eggs  on  May  17. 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


21 


From  one  female  collected  at  Oroville,  May  10  and  ex- 
amined May  13,  were  dissected  ten  eggs.  From  another  col- 
lected at  Brewster,  May  2,  one  egg  was  dissected  May  22. 

We  find  only  two  references  in  entomological  literature 
to  this  species  other  than  the  technical  description  by  Schoen- 
herr  and  both  are  by  Pierce  (11,  b and  11,  f). 

MYLACUS  SACCATUS  Leconte. 

(Plate  I.,  Fig.  6). 

This  species  was  reported  as  destroying  strawberry  buds 
and  leaves  at  Kettle  Falls,  Washington,  May  7,  1912.  At 
Deer  Park,  May  22,  and  at  Hunters,  May  11,  it  was  reported 
as  destroying  young  apple  tree  buds  and  leaves.  Specimens 
were  sent  to  us  from  these  places  for  our  determination,  and 
the  correspondents  asked  for  methods  of  controlling  the  new 
pests.  The  writer  collected  many  specimens  of  this  weevil 
on  one-  and  two-year-old  apple  trees  at  Brewster,  Washington, 
in  Ap/il  and  May,  1911  and  1912.  They  were  also  found 
abundant  on  the  wild  sunflower,  Balsamorfhiza  sagittata, 
which  grows  in  many  parts  of  the  sagebrush  region  in  great 
abundance.  At  Brewster,  Washington,  where  so  many  of 
these  weevils  were  found  the  sunflower  was  very  plentiful 
just  outside  the  young  orchards.  It  is  quite  certain  that 
Mylacus  saccatus  feeds  at  least  to  a considerable  extent  on 
this  wild  sunflower,  for  on  some  of  the  flower  heads  the  flow- 
ers were  largely  eaten  away.  In  several  instances  they  were 
observed  eating  on  the  flowers.  Although  many  of  the  flower 
heads  were  examined  no  eggs  or  larvae  of  the  weevils  were 
found  on  or  in  them. 

We  have  been  unable  to  find  any  literature  on  the  life 
history  and  habits  of  this  weevil  although  it  has  been  men- 
tioned before.  Pierce  (11,  c)  mentions  Mylacus  saccatus 
as  follows:  ''Mylacus  saccatus  Leconte,  Spokane  Falls,  Wash- 
ington, (Hubbard  and  Schwartz);  Easton,  Washington,  (Koe- 
bele). 

The  original  description  by  Leconte  (10,  b)  bears  the  fol- 
lowing note:  “Occurs  in  California  and  Oregon.” 

PANSCOPUS  AEQUALIS  Horn. 

(Plate  I.,  Fig  4). 

Panscopus  aeqnalis  Horn  is,  it  seems,  also  a native  of  the 
sagebrush,  Artemisia  tridentata,  and  is  more  or  less  generally 
distributed  over  the  Sonoran  area  of  the  whole  Northwest.  It 


22 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


has  been  recorded  from  the  following  places  by  Pierce  (11.  i): 
Green  River,  Wyoming;  National  Park;  Montana;  Utah;  Ton- 
asket,  Washington;  and  California.  The  writer  has  col- 
lected it  in  Washington  at  the  following  places:  Okanogan, 
April  14,  1911;  Chelan  Falls,  April  26,  1911:  Tonasket.  May  2, 
1911;  Mission,  April  5,  1911,  and  Malotte,  May  4.  1912.  This 
record  for  Washington  shows  that  it  is  not  found,  or  at  least 
has  not  been  collected,  in  the  southern  part  of  the  Upper 
Sonoran  zone. 

The  injury  caused  by  this  species  is  much  the  same  as 
that  caused  by  the  other  species  of  weevils.  We  have  ob- 
served that  it,  like  the  other  weevils,  feeds  on  the  young 
fruit  trees,  destroying  their  buds  in  the  spring,  but  we  have 
not  had  the  opportunity  to  make  a detailed  study  of  its  feeding 
habits  and  life  history.  The  weevils  are  fond  of  the  sap 
oozing  from  the  freshly  cut  twigs  and  can  he  found  sipping  it 
on  the  topmost  part  of  the  young  trees.  It  is  never  found  in 
very  great  numbers  and  consequently  it  does  not  cause 
serious  damage  as  do  some  of  the  other  species.  This  is  a 
more  hardy  species  apparently  than  any  of  the  others,  unless 
it  is  Tosastes  cinerasrens,  for  it  was  able  to  live  longer  in  con- 
finement than  the  other  species. 

Panscopus  aeqvalis  was  first  reported  in  Washington 
from  Tonasket  in  April,  1911.  Since  then  it  has  been  col- 
lected at  the  different  places  mentioned  above,  but  at  no 
place  was  it  so  abundant  as  at  Tonasket.  At  Malotte.  May  4. 
1912,  at  6:00  p.  m.  on  a cloudy  day  specimens  were  collected. 
They  were  found  feeding  on  one-year-old  apple  tree  buds. 
This  was  the  first  time  the  writer  had  seen  them  eating. 

They  were  quite  wary  and  upon  being  seen  suddenly  fell 
to  the  ground  where  they  lay  as  if  dead.  They  lay  so  still 
and  so  closely  resembled  the  brown  color  of  the  sandy  soil 
of  that  region  that  it  was  difficult  to  find  them. 

At  Okanogan  May  6 1912.  a number  of  the  weevils  were 
found  eating  the  buds  and  unfolding  leaves  on  new  grafts  on 
three-  and  four-year-old  apple  tree  stock.  The  owner  of  the 
orchard  reported  that  the  beetles  had  done  considerable  dam- 
age in  the  past  month  during  which  they  had  been  present. 
At  this  time  and  place  some  were  found  that  were  not  feed- 
ing but  were  hiding  in  the  notches  in  the  bark  and  in 
any  little  scars  in  which  they  could  conceal  themselves. 
All  of  the  weevils  did  not  fall  to  the  ground,  but  some 
stayed  on  the  tree  and  remained  perfectly  still  when 
they  were  aware  of  being  watched.  The  remarkable 
thing  about  this  species  at  this  particular  place  is  that 
these  trees  upon  which  the  weevils  were  feeding  were 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


23 


planted  on  land  that  had  been  under  cultivation  for 
seven  years  and  more.  Only  a couple  of  specimens  ot 
this  weevil  have  been  found  on  the  sagebrush  and  con- 
sequently it  cannot  be  said  that  it  is  a native  of  that 
plant.  The  fact  that  it  was  found  on  this  land  which  had 
been  under  cultivation  so  long  would  lead  one  to  suspect 
that  it  is  perhaps  a greater  traveler  than  the  other  species, 
and  that  it  had  come  into  the  orchard  f rom  the  native  habitat 
just  outside.  At  the  place  above  mentioned  the  grafts  were 
so  hardy  that  the  foliage  was  well  out  at  the  time,  the  leaves 
being  as  much  as  two  inches  long,  or  about  half  to  two-thirds 
grown.  The  beetles  were  not  feeding  upon  the  leaves  but 
upon  the  unfolded  terminal  or  center  buds.  At  noon  when 
the  sun  was  bright  and  warm  the  weevils  seemed  to  be  all 
hidden  away.  At  Malotte,  Washington,  this  weevil  did  con- 
siderable damage  to  the  Okanogan  Orchard,  working  to- 
gether with  Mimetes  setulosus  and  Tosastes  cinerascens  and 
killed  many  of  the  young  trees.  They  were  injurious  in 
both  the  springs  of  1911  and  1912.  In  1912  they  began  their 
work  as  near  as  could  be  determined  about  the  28th  of  March. 
By  May  8,  scarcely  any  weevils  could  be  found. 

In  the  spring  of  1911  thousands  of  the  weevils  were  pres- 
ent in  the  young  orchard  of  Mr.  M.  B.  Picken  of  Tonasket. 
Mr.  Picken  was  the  first  person  to  send  specimens  of  this 
particular  species  to  the  Experiment  Station.  He  reported 
that  the  beetles  did  considerable  damage  to  many  of  the 
trees  and  completely  killed  a couple  of  dozen.  On  May  9, 
1912,  many  of  the  weevils  were  found  in  this  same  orchard. 
It  was  getting  late  in  the  season  for  bud  weevils  to  be  pres- 
ent and  no  other  species  were  found.  Some  were  found  in 
the  young  leaves  and  on  the  buds,  but  most  of  them  were  on 
the  ground  under  clods  and  in  cracks  in  the  soil.  Several 
were  found  under  horse  manure  mulch  which  had  been 
spread  about  these  trees.  The  sun  was  bright  and  warm  on 
the  day  these  weevils  were  found,  and  most  of  them  were 
secreted  as  mentioned  above.  It  might  have  been  possible 
that  had  the  day  been  cloudy  they  would  have  been  busy 
feeding  on  the  buds  and  leaves.  Twelve  weevils  were  found 
under  one  tree.  Although  the  weevils  had  done  some  very 
serious  injury  earlier  in  the  spring  they  had  practically  all 
disappeared  at  this  time. 

Laboratory  Experiments  With  Panscopus  aequalis. 
Oviposition. 

On  May  8,  1912,  a package  of  bud  weevils  was  received 
from  Mr.  M.  B.  Picken  of  Tonasket,  Washington.  About 


24 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


forty  of  these  were  alive.  They  were  placed  in  a moist  cham- 
ber with  some  fresh  apple  leaves.  Many  of  the  weevils  died 
from  day  to  day,  but  the  live  ones  were  given  fresh  leaves 
daily  and  the  dead  and  the  withered  leaves  removed. 

On  May  15  a female  was  noticed  with  her  posterior  parts 
thrust  into  a fold  of  a tiny  apple  leaf  (Plate  III.,  Fig.  5).  She 
was  removed  to  another  chamber  containing  fresh  leaves. 
Upon  examination  on  the  morning  of  May  17th  it  was  found 
that  the  tiny  leaf  fold  contained  five  small,  white,  cylindrical 
eggs.  These  eggs  were  1 mm.  long  and  0.5  mm.  in  diameter.  A 
sketch  was  made  of  these  to  show  their  position  (Plate  III., 
Fig.  6).  Upon  further  examination  it  was  found  that  on  one 
of  the  leaves  that  had  been  • put  in  the  chamber  with  the 
weevil  there  were  three  of  the  folds  and  that  these  contained 
eggs  as  follows:  three,  four  and  ten,  respectively.  A sketch 
was  made  of  these  leaf  folds  (Plate  IV.,  Fig.  3). 

On  May  17  another  female  was  found  ovipositing  in  the 
fold  of  a leaf  in  the  original  chamber  with  the  other  weevils. 
The  fold  was  already  made  and  she  was  laying  her  last  egg  in 
the  last  group  when  she  was  first  observed.  She  was  placed 
in  a small  chamber  with  a fresh  apple  leaf  to  determine  if 
she  would  oviposit  any  more  and  if  she  would  do  so  at  night, 
for  it  was  dark  at  this  time.  She  laid  no  more  eggs  that  night 
nor  the  next  day,  but  during  the  second  night  she  laid  several 
groups. 

May  19  the  leaves  were  examined  in  the  original  cage 
containing  the  lot  of  weevils  and  many  of  the  leaf  folds  con- 
taining the  eggs  were  found.  Several  groups  were  examined 
and  from  four  to  nine  eggs  were  found  in  the  groups. 

At  dusk  on  May  18  eight  specimens  were  placed  in  a 
chamber  by  themselves  and  given  fresh  apple  leaves.  This 
was  to  see  if  they  would  oviposit  at  night.  The  cage  was 
kept  dark  until  eight  o’clock  the  next  morning  when  three 
groups  of  eggs  were  found  in  the  characteristic  leaf  folds. 
In  another  lot  similarly  treated  one  group  of  eggs  was  found. 
At  eight  o’clock  A.  M.  this  same  day  six  weevils  (some  of 
which  had  already  laid  some  eggs)  were  put  into  a chamber 
with  new  leaves  and  the  cage  darkened  throughout  the  day. 
At  the  same  time  seven  specimens  were  placed  in  a cage  on 
new  leaves  and  kept  in  normal  light.  At  5 o’clock  P.  M. 
four  groups  of  eggs  were  found  in  the  darkened  cage  and 
none  in  that  kept  in  the  normal  light.  This  brief  but  definite 
experiment  would  indicate  that  this  species  oviposits  only 
at  night  at  least  when  confined  in  the  laboratory. 

When  apple  leaves  were  not  present  for  the  weevils  to 
oviposit  in  they  always  laid  their  eggs  separately  in  the  bot- 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


25 


tom  of  the  chamber.  Although  stale  sagebrush  leaves  and 
some  stems  of  Balsamorrhiza  sagittata  were  placed  with  the 
beetles  yet  they  never  deposited  any  eggs  on  them.  Hund- 
reds of  eggs  were  scattered  promiscuously  over  the  bottom 
of  the  various  glass  chambers  in  which  the  weevils  were  con- 
fined. Inasmuch,  however,  as  the  larvae  hatched  out  quite 
readily  even  under  the  laboratory  conditions  it  would  seem 
that  it  is  not  necessary  for  the  eggs  to  be  deposited  in  any 
particular  place  or  manner. 


Table  No.  4,  showing  egg-laying  period  and  hatching  per- 
iod in  laboratory: 


Adult  weevils  collected 

l^lggs  laid  in 
laboratory 

Hatcinng  period  in 
laboratory 

Numl)er 

Hatched 

2 Okanogan,  Apr.  14,  1912. 

May  15  began 

June  2 to  5 

50 

3 Chelan,  Apr.  26,  1912.  ..  . 

May  IC)  l)egan 

June  6 

Many 

10  Tonasket,  May  2,  1912... 

.May  17,  22 

June  7 

Many 

12  Mission.  May  5,  1912.... 

May  18  many 

June  8 

Many 

May  19  many 

June  9 

SO 

June  10 

48 

June  11,  12 

200* 

June  13 

40 

June  14,  15 

55 

.lune  16 

20 

June  17 

10 

June  19 

7 

June  2 0 

6 

*Tlie  11th  and  12th  of  June  were  two  very  hot  days — the  first  of  the 
season.  The  tliermoineter  registered  92°  in  the  shade  outside  the  labora- 
tory and  it  was  perhaps  even  hotter  in  the  lalioratory  where  the  cages 
were.  This  inaxiiniun  teinpei-a Jure,  which  must  liave  more  closely  ap- 
proached that  of  the  natural  conditions  in  tlie  weevil’s  native  habitat,  no 
doubt  hastened  the  hatchirig-  of  the  eggs. 


Owing  to  the  writer’s  absence  from  the  laboratory  no  egg 
laying  record  was  kept  between  May  19  and  May  31,  and  con- 
sequently the  exact  time  when  the  weevils  ceased  laying  eggs 
was  not  determined.  None  were  laid  after  May  31. 

Incubation  of  Eggs  in  the  Laboratory. 

It  will  be  seen  from  the  foregoing  table  that  the  incuba- 
tion period  for  the  eggs  in  the  laboratory  was  about  from  the 
middle  of  May  to  nearly  the  last  of  June.  The  first  eggs 
were  laid  on  May  15  and  the  last  sometime  between  May  19 
and  May  31.  The  first  eggs  were  hatched  between  June  2 
and  5,  and  the  last  about  June  19.  All  larvae  hatched  out 
June  2 to  5 were  from  eggs  laid  May  15  to  19.  The  minimum 
time,  therefore,  for  the  eggs  to  lie  in  incubation  is  fourteen 
days,  and  the  maximum  twenty-one  days.  All  eggs  which 
hatched  out  June  19  had  been  laid  at  least  nineteen  days,  for 


26 


BUD  WEP:VILS  of  WASHINGTON 


none  were  laid  after  May  31,  but  there  is  the  possibility  that 
they  were  laid  as  early  as  May  19.  Judging,  however,  by  the 
minimum  and  maximum  time  required  for  the  first  lot  of 
eggs  to  hatch  and  the  minimum  required  for  the  last  lot  it 
can  be  safely  stated  that  the  time  required,  under  the  labor- 
atory conditions,  is  between  nineteen  and  twenty-one  days, 
although  they  would,  as  is  well  known,  require  less  time  with 
the  higher  temperatures. 

Feeding  experiments  with  young  larvae  were  carried  on 
but  the  results  were  rather  indefinite  and  not  worth  record- 
ing here. 

Notes  on  Weevils  in  the  Laboratory. 

Seven  weevils  were  placed  in  a glass  jar  and  given  fresh 
apple  leaves  on  May  8,  and  fresh  leaves  were  supplied  about 
every  second  day  thereafter.  On  May  18  the  weevils 
were  placed  in  another  jar  in  the  normal  light  and  kept  there 
throughout  the  day  to  see  whether  they  would  lay  eggs.  They 
did  not  lay  eggs  during  the  first  day  but  sometime  between 
May  18  and  May  31  they  laid  from  seventy-five  to  one  hund- 
red eggs.  Some  were  deposited  loosely  on  the  bottom  of  the 
jar,  but  others  were  inserted  between  the  folds  of  the  leaves 
which  the  females  had  in  some  manner  formed  for  that  pur- 
pose. Four  of  the  weevils  were  dead  June  6.  The  other  three 
were  on  their  backs  which  position  they  had  occupied  for  sev- 
eral days.  On  June  9 they  again  ate  a little  of  the  apple 
leaves.  On  this  date  they  were  transferred  to  a jar  contain- 
ing moist  soil  and  fragments  of  grass  roots,  and  within  five 
minutes  after  having  been  placed  in  the  jar  they  were  all  hid- 
den from  sight.  On  June  10  they  were  still  in  the  ground. 
On  June  12  the  soil  was  moistened  slightly  and  on  the  13th 
of  June  the  weevils  were  on  top  of  the  soil  and  feeding  raven- 
ously upon  the  apple  leaves.  At  this  time  they  were  very  ac- 
tive and  when  disturbed  they  did  not  play  as  if  dead  but 
scampered  away  with  considerable  agility.  During  the  night 
of  June  15  they  ate  about  three-fourths  of  an  inch  square  of 
apple  leaf.  They  continued  eating  the  leaves  until  June  21 
when  the  soil  in  the  jar  was  loosened  and  inside  of  five  min- 
utes they  were  hidden  down  in  the  soil  and  out  of  sight.  One 
half  an  hour  later,  however,  they  were  again  feeding  on  the 
leaves.  On  July  7 they  seemed  alive  but  inactive,  and  on  July 
8 they  showed  the  last  signs  of  life. 

The  original  description  of  this  species  was  given  by 
Horn  (6,  b),  as  I^ocheles  aequaiis  with  the  tabular  name  A". 
cinereiis,  hut  as  the  tabular  name  was  not  used  with  the  des- 
cription it  has  not  been  accepted. 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


27 


At  the  conclusion  of  his  description  Horn  makes  the  fol- 
lowing statement  as  to  its  distribution:  “Occurs  from  Kansas 
to  British  Columbia.” 

Although  Horn  gives  this  distribution  for  this  species  it 
is  the  opinion  of  the  writer  that  this  is  too  general  a state- 
ment judging  from  the  localities  from  which  it  has  been  col- 
lected. Our  studies  would  lead  us  to  believe  that  its  distribu- 
tion could  be  more  properly  limited  to  the  Sonoran  Zone  with- 
in the  area  designated  by  Horn,  including  a more  southerly 
distribution  into  California. 

Pierce  (11,  j),  discusses  the  synonomy  and  distribution 
of  this  species,  and  credits  the  writer  for  specimens  from  this 
state. 


PANSCOPUS  SULCIROSTRIS  Pierce. 

This  new  species  of  weevil  is  not  known  to  be  injurious, 
but  inasmuch  as  it  is  a species  entirely  new  to  science  and 
nothing  is  known  of  its  habits  it  is  reported  here  since  there 
is  a possibility  that  further  investigation  may  show  it  to  be 
harmful.  A single  specimen  was  collected  at  Oak  Point,  Wash- 
ington, April  30,  1910.  This  specimen  was  sent  to  the  Depart- 
ment of  Entomology,  State  College  of  Washington,  but  was 
referred  to  the  Bureau  of  Entomology,  Washington,  D.  C.,  for 
determination  and  description,  and  it  proved  to  be  a new 
species.  The  specimen  had  been  taken  from  a lily  plant,  but 
what  kind  and  whether  it  was  doing  any  harm  our  correspond- 
ent did  not  say. 

The  description  of  this  weevil  and  a short  note  is  by 
Pierce  (11, i). 

SITONA  APACHEANA  Casey. 

(Plate  II.,  Fig  7). 

This  weevil  was  found  in  considerable  numbers  at  Brew- 
ster, Wash.,  on  one  year  old  trees  where  it  did  some  damage. 
It  does  not  cause  as  much  injury  as  the  other  weevils.  It  has 
also  been  collected  by  the  writer  at  Okanogan,  Wenatchee  and 
Tonasket.  The  nature  of  its  injury  is  so  much  like  that  of  the 
other  species  that  no  distinguishing  characteristics  were  notic- 
ed. Specimens  were  taken  also  at  each  of  the  above  mentioned 
places  on  a species  of  Lupinus  along  withCieonus  lohigerinus 
Casey,  and  Cleoniis  quadrilineatus  Chev.  At  Brewster  and  at 
Okanogan  some  specimens  were  collected  on  sagebrush, 
Artemisia  tridentata. 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


So  far  as  the  writer  has  been  able  to  learn  there  is  noth- 
ing known  as  to  the  life  history  and  habits  of  this  weevil. 
The  technical  description  is  by  Casey  (1,  a). 

TOSASTES  CINERASCENS  Pierce. 

(Plate  L,  Fig.  1). 

This  weevil  is  without  doubt  the  most  important  from 
an  economic  standpoint,  of  any  of  those  discussed  in  this 
paper.  It  is  relatively  new  to  science,  having  been  described 
by  Pierce  in  1913  (11,  e).  It  is  an  exceptional  example  of  an 
unknown  species  suddenly  becoming,  under  changed  ecologi- 
cal conditions,  a serious  pest  and  an  important  agricultural 
problem.  In  its  natural  habitat  it  is  a native  of  the  sage- 
brush, Artemisia  tridentata,  but  when  its  natural  food  plant 
IS  removed  from  the  land  and  another  substituted  it  tries  to 
adjust  itself  to  the  new  conditions,  or  at  least  save  itself 
from  starvation,  and  so  feeds  upon  the  young  trees  instead 
of  its  native  food. 

Nature  and  Extent  of  Injury. 

The  weevils  are  of  economic  importance  on  account  of 
the  serious  injury  they  do  by  eating  the  buds  of  young  fruit 
trees.  They  feed  upon  the  buds  of  one-  and  two-year-old 
trees  only.  However,  at  this  age  the  trees  are  so  small  and 
the  buds  so  few  that  a small  number  of  weevils  can  do  very 
serious  harm.  The  feeding  upon  apple  buds  is  done  during 
the  spring  months.  We  do  not  know  what  they  feed  upon 
after  that  period.  They  first  appear  in  March,  either  just 
after  they  have  transformed  from  the  pupal  stage,  or  else 
after  emerging  from  their  hibernation  quarters  where  they 
spent  the  winter  as  adults.  When  they  first  appear  they 
climb  up  onto  the  recently  planted  trees  and  feed  on  the  un- 
opened buds.  Sometimes  they  eat  out  the  center  of  the  buds 
well  down  into  the  wood.  When  the  buds  are  thus  badly 
eaten  they  do  not  recover  and  the  tree  dies,  but  many  times 
only  a few  of  the  buds  are  thus  destroyed,  or  they  are  only 
partly  eaten,  in  which  case  they  sometimes  recover  and  put 
out  new  buds  and  thus  save  the  life  of  the  tree.  The  char- 
acter of  the  injury  caused  by  this  weevil  is  shown  in  Fig.  9., 
Plate  IV.,  and  Figs.  12,  13,  Plate  VI. 

Inasmuch  as  they  are  native  on  the  sagebrush  and  cannot 
survive  long  after  they  are  deprived  of  their  native  food 
and  since  apparently  they  cannot  propogate  themselves  under 
changed  conditions,  it  is  evident  that  they  cannot  long  persist 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


29 


in  cultivated  land.  They  are  always  most  abundant  in  virgin 
land,  and  are  seldom  if  ever  found  in  orchards  that  have  been 
planted  on  land  under  cultivation  over  one  year. 

During  the  years  from  1909  to  1914,  while  the  weevils 
were  more  or  less  under  our  observation,  thousands  of  acres 
of  arid  land  were  cleared  of  sagebrush  in  Washington  and 
planted  to  fruit  trees.  This  more  or  less  sudden  encroachment 
by  man  upon  the  domains  of  the  fauna  native  to  that  region 
caused  the  weevils  to  assume  importance  as  a pest.  This 
species  in  particular,  being  larger  than  the  others  and  also 
much  more  abundant,  caused  thousands  of  dollars  of  damage 
to  the  orchardists  throughout  the  whole  of  the  arid  region 
in  Washington. 

Distribution. 

Tosastes  cinerascens,  being  a native  of  the  sagebrush,  is 
found  in  Washington  in  the  Upper  Sonoran  Zone  only  where 
that  plant  is  endemic.  It  has  been  sent  to  the  Experiment 
Station  by  correspondents  and  collected  by  the  writer  in  a 
great  many  places  throughout  this  arid  zone  which  extends 
in  a more  or  less  irregular  strip  across  the  State  from  south 
to  north,  along  the  Columbia  River  and  its  tributaries. 

Food  Plants. 

Besides  its  native  food  plsucit,  Artemisia  tridentata,  Tosas- 
tes cinerascens  feeds  more  or  less  on  the  following  plants*. 
Apple,  apricot,  cherry,  currant.  Lupine,  peach,  prune,  pear, 
plum,  rose  and  sunflower.  Upon  some  of  these  hosts  speci- 
mens have  been  found  but  a few  times  and  then  it  was  not 
definitely  known  that  they  were  feeding  upon  them,  but  upon 
most  of  them  the  weevils  were  found  in  considerable  abund- 
ance. From  an  economic  standpoint  their  destruction  of  the 
apple  buds  is  of  chief  importance. 

Life  History. 

Egg  stage. 

Definite  data  as  to  the  exact  number  of  eggs  contained 
normally  by  the  weevils  were  not  obtained  owing  to  the  fact 
that  some  specimens  may  have  oviposited  before  they  were 
captured  or  before  they  were  dissected.  The  figures  given, 
however,  are  worth  something  to  show  the  possibilities  of 
oviposition  of  this  species.  About  one  hundred  and  twenty 
specimens  in  all  were  dissected.  Some  were  dissected  while 
still  alive,  but  practically  all  had  died  within  the  preceeding 
twenty-four  hours.  In  table  No.  .5  are  shown  the  results  of  the 


30 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


dissections.  . A summary  shows  that  there  were  several  fe- 
males containing-  no  eggs,  and  that  there  was  no  consistent 
average  number  of  eggs  in  the  weevils  examined.  The  maxi- 
mum number  was  fifty-two. 

Table  No.  5,  showing  the  number  of  eggs  dissected  from 
the  different  weevils: 

5  weevils  contained  1 egg  each 
8 weevils  contained  2 eggs  each 
3 weevils  contained  3 eggs  each 
8 weevils  contained  4 eggs  each 
2 weevils  contained  5 eggs  each 
7 weevils  contained  6 eggs  each 

2 weevils  contained  7 eggs  each 
13  weevils  contained  8 eggs  each 

5 weevils  contained  10  eggs  each 
1 weevil  contained  12  eggs 

■ ' 2 weevils  contained  13  eggs  each 

7 weevils  contained  14  eggs  each 

6 weevils  contained  15  eggs  each 

3 weevils  contained  16  eggs  each 

7 weevils  contained  18  eggs  each 

3 weevils  contained  20  eggs  each 

4 weevils  contained  22  eggs  each 

1 weevil  contained  23  eggs 

5 weevils  contained  24  eggs  each 
5 weevils  contained  26  eggs  each 

2 weevils  contained  27  eggs  each 

1 weevil  contained  30  eggs 

4 weevils  contained  32  eggs  each 

2 weevils  contained  36  eggs  each 
1 weevil  contained  42  eggs 

1 weevil  contained  43  eggs 
1 weevil  contained  46  eggs 
1 weevil  contained  52  eggs 

Description  of  Egg  of  Tosastes  cinerascens. 

The  egg  is  of  a creamy  white  color,  somewhat  longer 
than  wide,  with  ends  bluntly  rounded.  Length,  0.75  mm.;  di- 
ameter, 0.5  mm.  (Plate  IV.,  Fig.  10,  c). 

Oviposition  of  Weevils  in  Laboratory. 


TABLE  NO.  6. 


Collected  from 

Date  of  ovioosl- 

tion 

, Number  of  es'g’s 

1 Remarks 

1 

Brewster, 

April  2!) 

May 

14 

Several 

i ( )n 

sunflo  wer 

Hi-ewstei-, 

Miiy  2. 

M<ay 

IT) 

Several 

( )n 

sunf1ow<M- 

lirewstei’, 

April  23 

May 

18 

12 

Sin 

sly  placed 

Brewstei-, 

April  2!) 

May 

29 

5 

On 

apple 

Brew.ster. 

May  2 . 

May 

18 

Several 

BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


31 


Owing  to  the  absence  of  the  writer  from  the  laboratory 
no  records  of  the  hatching  of  these  eggs  were  made  other 
than  that  some  of  them  did  hatch  several  days  later. 

A drawing  was  made  showing  the  side  view  of  one  of  the 
young  larvae  not  more  than  three  days  old  (Plate  IV.,  Fig. 
10,  a),  and  another  sketch  (Plate  IV.,  Fig  10,  b),  showing  the 
front  view  of  the  head. 


Table  No.  7,  showing  the  length  of  life  of  Tosastes  ciner- 
ascens  in  confinement  in  glass  Petrie  dishes  in  laboratory 
without  nourishment  of  any  kind. 


Collected 


4-16-lJ)12 
}-l(;-l!)12 
4-27-11)12 
4-2!)-l!)1  2 


:.-7-l!)12 


5-2-1912 


5-2-1!)!  2 

5-2-11)1  2 


? 11)12 

? 11)12 
? 11)12 

? 11)12 
? 11)12 


? 11)12 

? 11)12 
? 11)12 


Confined 

Date 

Dead 

No.  Confined 

No.  Dea  d 

No.  per  indi- 

vidual dissected 

Male 

Male 

Female 

Female 

5-2G,  1912 

6-1 

3 4 

2 

6,  3 

5-26,  1912 

6-18 

2 

26.  6 

5-26,  1912 

6-1 

2 

2 

27.  8 

5-26,  1912 

6-1 

12 

5 

36.  IS.  14.  3.  13 

6-7 

2 

4 6,  52  (a) 

6-10 

1 

5-26,  1912 

6-1 

3 9 

1 4 

2,  1,  13,  1 

6-4 

2 

6-7 

2 

42 

6-10 

1 

6-13 

2 

5-26,  1912 

6-1 

5 36 

2 10 

36,  3,  13,  16,  32,  20, 

5,  2 0 

6-3 

2 12 

32,  15,  23,  14,  26,  5. 

2 0,  4,  11,  15,  S,  2 2 

6-4 

7 

7,  22,  8,  14,  18,  24, 

6-1  0 

1 7 

10,’  1,  10,  4,  16,  8.  24 

.5-28,  1912 

6-3  1 

4 15 

3 12 

4.  22.  26,  18.  8,  24. 

1 1 

2 6,  IS 

1 6-7 

1 3 

2,  18.  6 

5-28.  1912 

6-1 

2 9 

1 4 

27,  8,  15,  2 

1 !?-4 

1 

6-7 

1 

8 

6-13 

4 

2.  14,  18,  4 

5-28,  1912 

6-1 

4 

2 

43,  24 

6-13 

2 

0,  0 

5-28,  1912 

6-1 

1 

1 

7 

5-28,  1912 

6-1 

2 

2 

10,  4 

6-1 

1 1 

1 

6-4 

1 

0 

5-28,  1912 

6-1 

1 8 

1 8 

2,  12,  4,  6,  22.  8, 

15,  0 

5-28,  1912 

6-1 

3 17 

1 

15 

6-3 

2 12 

2,  8,  23,  32.  8,  6, 

24,  26 

5-28,  1912 

6-4 

1 1 

0 

6-10 

3 

6,  10,  15 

5-28,  1912 

6-3 

2 12 

1 6 

8,  24,  30.  1 4.  4.  2 

6-13 

1 6 

(b) 

5-28,  1912 

6 -.3 

6 

6 

2.  6.  14,  8.  16.  0 

6-3 

2 4 

14  4 

4,  8,10,  0 

5-28,  1912 

6-4 

1 

(a)  This  is  the  largest  number  of  eggs  found  in  Tosafites  cin- 
erascens. 

(b)  At  this  time  several  young  larvae  were  found  crawling 
ubout  in  the  dish. 


32 


BUD  WEEVILS  OP  WASHINGTON 


The  relative  vitality  of  the  males  and  females  is  also 
shown  and  the  number  of  eggs  contained  in  each  female. 

Life  History  of  Adult  Weevil. 

Nothing  whatever  is  known  of  the  habits  of  this  species 
of  weevil  during  the  months  from  June  to  March,  inclusive. 
It  is  known  that  sometime  during  March  the  weevils  begin 
to  appear  on  the  buds  of  fruit  trees,  but  from  where  they 
come  we  do  not  know.  From  the  middle  of  March  to  the 
middle  of  May  they  are  more  or  less  abundant  but  after  that 
they  disappear  and  nothing  is  known  as  to  what  becomes  of 
them.  The  earliest  date  of  appearance  of  which  we  have 
record  is  March  22,  at  Riparia,  and  the  latest  date  they  have 
been  collected  is  May  11,  at  Oroville.  This  difference  in  lo- 
cality for  the  earliest  date  and  the  latest  date  is  significant 
when  we  consider  that  the  earliest  date  locality  is  in  the 
earliest  seasonal  district  in  the  State  and  the  latest  date  lo- 
cality is  in  the  latest  seasonal  district  within  the  Upper  Son- 
oran Zone  where  the  weevils  are  found. 

Judging  by  the  oviposition  period  in  the  laboratory,  May 
14  to  May  29,  it  would  seem  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the 
oviposition  period  under  normal  conditions  might  be  during 
the  last  half  of  May. 

Miscellaneous  Field  Notes  on  the  Habits  of 
Tosastes  cinerascens. 

Action  in  regard  to  light  and  weather: 

From  12:30  to  1:30  o’clock  on  May  2,  1912,  it  rained  at 
Brewster.  When  the  shower  was  observed  approaching 
hundreds  of  weevils  were  seen  climbing  up  on  grass  blades, 
weeds  and  sagebrush.  Some  were  on  the  top  of  grass  blades 
not  more  than  two  inches  tall,  while  others  were  on  the  top- 
most twigs  of  sagebrush  two  feet  above  the  ground.  At  this 
time  nearly  all  of  the  weevils  were  paired.  Some  were  feed- 
ing. After  it  had  cleared  up  a little  they  were  down  on  the 
ground  again  and  not  in  copulation.  After  about  half  an 
hour  when  another  shower  threatened,  the  weevils  were 
again  paired  and  up  on  the  bushes,  grass  and  weeds. 

The  fact  that  the  weevils  climbed  into  the  bushes  when 
the  rain  came  would  indicate  that  they  did  this  for  protection 
from  the  wet.  In  the  orchard  there  was  little  or  no  protec- 
tion for  them. 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


33 


It  would  seem  from  the  foregoing-  observations,  and 
from  a great  many  other  observations  in  different  parts  of 
the  infested  district,  that  this  species  may  be  present  and 
perhaps  feeding  in  either  bright  sunlight  or  in  dark,  murky 
or  even  rainy  weather,  but  that  it  is  more  active  both  at 
feeding  and  copulating  at  least  when  the  weather  is  dark 
and  cloudy.  It  may  even  be  that  the  weevils  are  nocturnal 
in  part  but  this  point  has  unfortunately  not  been  determined. 
Copulation. 

A few  specimens  were  observed  copulating  at  Wenat- 
chee, April  9,  1911.  The  weather  was  at  times  cloudy  and 
threatening. 

A few  were  copulating  at  Chelan  in  the  late  afternoon  of 
April  27,  1912.  The  day  was  dark,  cloudy,  and  starting  to 
rain. 

Four  pairs  were  copulating  out  of  76  weevils  at  Brew- 
ster, May  2,  1912,  at  10  A.  M.  The  weather  was  dark,  cool 
and  cloudy. 

At  noon,  just  before  and  during  a shower,  apparently  all 
were  copulating.  There  was  at  this  time  it  seemed  just  as 
many  males  as  females.  It  was  an  easy  matter  to  distinguish 
the  two  sexes  by  the  great  difference  in  size  alone.  The  fe- 
male is  much  larger  than  the  male,  as  shown  in  Fig.  11,  a,  b, 
Plate  V.  Length  of  male,  5 mm.;  length  of  female,  6.8  mm. 

Manner  of  Feeding  on  Fruit  Trees. 

The  favorite  position  of  this  species  when  feeding  on  a 
young  apple  leaf  is  astride  the  leaf.  It  first  reaches  out  its 
head  as  far  as  possible  and  begins  to  eat,  gradually  eating  to- 
ward itself  until  it  is  eating  beneath  its  thorax  and  between 
its  fore  legs.  It  repeats  this  operation  over  and  over  again, 
each  time  cutting  away  a considerable  portion  of  the  edge  of 
the  leaf  and  swallowing  all  that  is  bitten  off.  When  feeding 
upon  the  bud  it  stands  astride  or  upon  the  bud  and  eats  out 
the  center,  begining  at  the  tip.  It  often  eats  only  the  tender 
inside  of  the  bud  leaving  the  tough  outer  scales.  Sometimes, 
however,  it  eats  all  the  bud  and  also  a considerable  portion 
of  the  bark  as  well.  The  characteristic  attitude  of  this  weevil 
while  feeding  is  shown  in  Plate  VI.,  Fig.  12,  and  a specimen 
of  its  work  in  Plate  VI.,  Fig  13.  This  example  of  the  injury 
caused  by  this  weevil  is  an  extreme  case,  showing  that  a con- 
siderable portion  of  the  bark  has  been  destroyed. 

Distribution  of  Weevils  Adjoining  an  Orchard. 

At  Brewster,  where  this  species  was  extremely  abundant 
a study  was  made  as  to  the  approximate  number  of  weevils 


34 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


present  on  a p:iven  area  and  as  to  the  comparative  number  on 
cultivated  and  virgin  sage  land  (Plate  VI..  Fig.  14). 

(1)  A circle  was  drawn  on  the  ground  about  six  feet  in 
diameter,  the  center  of  which  was  just  at  the  juncture  of  the 
sod  and  the  cultivated  land.  On  the  sod  there  was  a little 
sagebrush,  some  bunch  grass  and  a few  weeds.  On  the  culti- 
vated land  there  was  no  vegetation  except  the  young  apple 
trees  which  had  been  planted  three  weeks  before.  The  ground 
and  the  plants  within  the  circle  were  examined  at  10  o'clock 
in  the  forenoon  and  seventy-six  weevils  were  found.  Four 
pairs  were  included  in  the  lot.  One  specimen  was  feeding  on 
sage  but  all  others  were  on  the  ground. 

(2)  Another  circle  the  same  size  as  the  first  was  drawn 
entirely  on  the  cultivated  ground  and  adjoining  circle  No.  1. 
In  this  circle  twenty-six  weevils  were  found  of  which  there 
was  but  one  pair  mating.  All  of  these  weevils  were  of  course 
on  the  ground  for  there  was  no  vegetation. 

(3)  Another  circle  similar  to  the  others  was  drawn  en- 
tirely on  cultivated  land  and  adjoining  No.  2 on  the  orchard 
side.  In  this  circle  two  weevils  were  found. 

(4)  Another  circle,  drawn  all  on  the  sod  suporting  only 
grass  and  weeds,  contained  twenty-one  specimens,  of  which 
four  were  paired. 

(5)  This  circle  was  entirely  on  the  sod  with  the  inner 
edge  touching  the  cultivated  land.  In  this  forty-five  weevils 
were  found  of  which  six  were  paired.  Nearly  all  of  these  in 
this  circle  were  exposed  at  this  time  (10:30  to  11:55  A.  M.). 

(6)  A circle  adioining  circle  No.  5 was  drawn  all  on 
cultivated  land.  In  this  thirty-seven  were  collected  of  which 
eight  were  paired. 

(7)  Another  circle  was  drawn  on  cultivated  land  be- 
tween No.  1 and  6.  In  this  circle  sixty-three  weevils  were 
found  of  which  eight  were  paired. 

(8)  Another  circle  was  drawn  all  on  cultivated  land 
around  a young  apple  tree,  the  buds  of  which  were  uninjured. 
In  this  circle  forty-eight  weevils  were  collected  of  which  six 
were  paired. 

Table  No.  8,  showing  the  comparative  number  of  the  two 
sexes. 


Number  of 

weevils  alive 

' Number  dead 

i 

Total 

male:: 

Total  females 

Total 

Mji.les 

11 

Females 

76 

1 

Males  K(‘mal('s 
98  206 

1U‘J 

282 

891 

BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


35 


These  figures  indicate  that  among  these  representative 
lots  approximately  28%  of  the  total  number  are  males. 

TRICOLEPSIS  Sp. 

An  undetermined  species  of  Tricolepsis  was  sent  us  from 
Washougal,  Washington.  Our  correspondent  reported  that 
they  were  eating  the  foliage  of  young  prune  trees,  “stripping 
them  of  their  leaves  in  a short  time.” 

Tricdepsi^i  inornata  has  been  reported  in  Oregon  by 
Cordley  (4,  a,  b),  as  a new  and  more  or  less  serious  prune  tree 
pest. 

TYCHIUS  LINEELLUS  Leconte. 

(Plate  L,  Fig.  8). 

This  species  has  not  been  reported  as  especially  injur- 
ious to  plants  of  any  kind  but  it  has  been  sent  to  us  as  one 
commonly  found  in  company  with  some  of  the  destructive 
weevils.  It  has  been  collected  by  the  writer  on  young  apple 
trees  at  a number  of  places,  but  so  far  as  known  it  does  little 
or  no  damage.  It  is  often  sent  along  with  other  weevils  for 
our  determination,  therefore  it  is  fitting  that  it  be  mentioned 
here. 

The  original  description  of  this  species  is  by  Leconte 
(10,  a). 


COTALPA  GRANICOLLIS  Haldeman. 

(Plate  II.,  Fig.  4). 

This  member  of  the  June  beetle  group  has  been  sent  in 
by  correspondents  from  time  to  time  and  reported  as  injur- 
ious to  the  buds  and  young  leaves  of  peach  tree.s  in  the  cen- 
tral part  of  the  state.  The  writer  has  collected  it  in  many 
places  throughout  the  sagebrush  region,  both  on  the  sage, 
Artemisia  tridentata,  and  on  the  young  peach  trees.  It  is 
found  more  or  less  commonly  on  peach  trees  wherever  they 
are  grown  in  this  state.  They  are  not,  however,  such  a ser- 
ious pest  as  their  size  and  ferocious  appearance  might  seem 
to  indicate.  Though  they  do  feed  to  a considerable  extent 
upon  opening  peach  buds,  most  of  their  feeding  is  on  the 
well-opened  leaves  and  at  this  stage  they  are  unable  to  cause 


36 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON. 


serious  damage  because  they  are  never  present  in  sufficient 
numbers.  These  beetles  were  seen  by  the  writer  in  consider- 
able numbers  at  Kennewick,  Washington,  April  14-15,  1912, 
and  at  that  time  they  were  mating.  It  was  common  to  see 
several  of  the  males  and  females  clustered  together  on  a 
small  peach  tree. 

Prof.  A.  L.  Melander  observed  these  beetles  in  large  num- 
bers clinging  to  the  blossoms  of  apple  trees  at  Kennewick. 
In  many  cases  they  had  eaten  every  blossom  on  the  trees, 
in  this  way  they  had  caused  considerable  injury  to  the  crop. 

On  account  of  their  large  size  they  can  be  readily  seen, 
picked  off  and  destroyed. 

The  only  stage  in  the  life  of  this  beetle  that  we  were  able 
to  see  other  than  the  adult,  was  the  egg  which  is  figured  in 
Plate  VI.,  Fig.  15.  The  egg  is  of  a creamy  white  color,  about 
1 mm.  in  greatest  length. 

The  original  description  of  Cotalpa  granicollis  is  by 
Haldeman. 


EUSATTUS  MURICATUS  Leconte. 

(Plate  II.,  Fig.  3). 

This  species  was  sent  to  us  first  from  Riparia,  Washing- 
ton, April  9,  1911.  It  was  reported  as  feeding  on  one-  and 
twO-year-old  peach  trees  and  sometimes  girdling  the  ends  of 
young  peach  shoots.  It  was  reported  from  Mabton,  Wash- 
ington, as  “feeding  on  the  young  cherry  leaves — devouring  a 
small  leaf  in  five  minutes  time.”  Some  specimens  were  sent 
in  from  Kennewick  with  the  same  complaint.  The  writer 
found  specimens  down  in  the  soil  at  the  base  of  the  trees  as 
much  as  an  inch  and  a half  below  the  surface.  They  have 
been  found  feeding  at  9:00  o’clock  in  the  morning  on  a warm, 
bright  day.  One  correspondent  claimed  that  the  beetles 
could  travel  with  great  speed. 

Prof.  A.  L.  Melander  has  observed  this  beetle  while  feed- 
ing and  finds  that  it  travels  readily  up  the  trees  and  from  bud 
to  bud.  It  eats  bud  after  bud  in  a relatively  short  time  and 
can  soon  destroy  all  the  buds  on  a living  tree.  They  also  in- 
fest older  trees  and  feed  on  the  blossoms  as  well  as  the  buds 
and  young  leaves.  They  have  been  known  to  destroy  the 
apple  blossoms  in  some  orchards  to  such  an  extent  that  the 
crop  was  practically  ruined. 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


37 


These  beetles  are  large  and  conspicuous,  measuring  about 
one-half  of  an  inch  in  length  and  nearly  as  much  in  width. 
They  are  black  in  color  with  a narrow  fringe  of  short  golden 
hairs  extending  across  their  backs  from  side  to  side. 

The  only  reference  in  literature  to  this  species  other  than 
the  description  by  Leconte  (10,  d),  is  a note  by  Wickliam 
(13,  b),  which  is  as  follows:  ''Eusattus  muricatus  may  be 
found  around  the  roots  of  bushes  in  sandy  places  during  July 
and  August.”  (In  New  Mexico  and  Arizona). 

GLYPTOSCELIS  ALTERNATA  Crotch. 

(Plate  II.,  Fig.  5). 

This  CHrysomelid  is  often  spoken  of  as  “one  of  the  bud- 
weevils,”  although  it  is  an  entirely  different  insect.  It  is, 
however,  so  closely  associated  with  tne  weevils  that  it  is 
found  practically  wherever  the  weevils  are  found.  They 
seem  to  be  as  widely  distributed  over  the  state  as  are  the 
true  weevils,  and  are  usually  found  in  company  with  Minte- 
tes  setulosus,  Cercopeus  ar  times  iae,  Meta  mo  nip  tins  luteus 
and  Pamcopus  aequalis.  It  seems  also  to  be  a native  of  the 
sagebrush  for  it  can  be  found  on  this  plant  in  all  parts  of  the 
f, agebrush  region  of  the  state.  In  color  this  beetle  so  closely 
resembles  the  gray-green  of  the  sage  leaves  and  bark  that  it 
is  often  a little  difficult  to  distinguish  it  readily. 

Just  how  serious  are  the  injuries  caused  by  this  insect  it 
is  not  possible  to  say  at  this  time,  but  it  is  known  that  it  is 
present  in  goodly  numbers  on  the  young  fruit  trees  in  many 
orchards  throughout  the  sagebrush  district  of  the  state.  The 
nature  of  their  injury  is  about  the  same  as  that  caused  by  the 
true  weevils. 

An  important  difference  between  this  beetle  and  the 
weevils  is  that  it  has  wings  and  flies  readily  from  bush  to 
bush  and  from  tree  to  tree,  while  the  weevils  are  all  wing- 
less. This  is  significant  when  we  consider  the  method  of  con- 
trol, for  it  cannot  be  kept  out  of  the  trees  by  the  use  of  tree 
protectors  as  can  the  wingless  weevils.  The  wing  of  this 
species  is  shown  in  Plate  VI.,  Fig.  16. 

Miscellaneous  Laboratory  Notes  on  Glyptoscelis  alternata. 

Two  female  beetles  that  had  been  placed  in  confinement 
April  29  were  dissected  May  5 and  they  contained  11  and  20 
eggs  respectively.  These  eggs  were  of  the  shape  shown  in  Plate 
VI.,  Fig.  17.  They  are  creamy  white  and  1.25  mm.  x 0.4  mm. 


38 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


in  length  and  diameter  respectively.  Of  two  other  beetles 
confined  April  29  and  dissected  May  13,  one  contained  three 
and  the  other  ten  eggs.  One  female  confined  April  29 
had  by  May  5 deposited  many  eggs  on  leaves  of  Artemisia 
tridentata.  The  eggs  were  placed  on  end  in  groups  for  the 
most  part,  although  some  were  rather  scattered.  The  eggs 
were  placed  on  the  leaf  as  shown  in  Plate  VI.,  Fig.  18. 

This  species  was  described  by  Crotch  (5)  from  California 
and  was  recorded  by  Horn  (6,  f),  also  from  Wyoming,  with- 
out reference  to  food  habits. 

POLYPHYLLA  DECEMLINEATA  Say. 

(Plate  IT,  Fig.  6). 

This  large  conspicuous  beetle  has  been  collected  on  apple 
trees  where  it  is  reported  as  feeding  on  the  buds  and  leaves. 
At  Zillah,  Washington,  it  was  said  to  be  especially  injurious 
to  young  apple  grafts.  It  is  not,  however,  a very  serious  pest 
and  is  not  likely  to  become  abundant  enough  to  cause  any 
great  amount  of  harm. 

The  larva  of  this  beetle  is  a large  white  grub  about  an 
inch  and  a half  long,  with  a plump  white  body  and  dark 
brown  head.  It  feeds  upon  the  roots  of  plants  of  various 
kinds  and  destroys  them.  Just  what  kind  of  roots  it  feeds 
upon  in  our  state  is  not  known.  The  larva  requires  three 
years  for  its  development,  and  consequently  the  beetles  are 
not  so  numerous  some  years  as  they  are  others.  In  certain 
parts  of  the  country,  in  British  Columbia  for  instance,  this 
insect  is  also  a serious  pest  of  strawberry  plants.  The  large 
grubs  destroy  the  roots,  thus  killing  the  plants. 

The  beetles  are  of  a light  brown  color  marked  with  ten 
longitudinal  white  stripes.  Eight  of  these  stripes  reach  the 
whole  length  of  the  wing  covers  and  the  other  two  are  short, 
extending  only  about  one-fifth  or  sixth  of  the  distance  back 
from  the  anterior  end  of  the  wing  covers.  The  beetles  are 
about  an  inch  and  a quarter  in  length  and  about  one-half  inch 
in  diameter  and  of  a plump,  round  form.  The  breast  is  cov- 
ered with  a brownish  down,  and  the  abdomen  has  three  trans- 
verse stripes.  The  beetles  fly  about  readily  at  night  and  are 
attracted  to  lights.  This  gave  a clue  as  to  a method  of  cap- 
turing them  by  lantern  traps  which  have  been  used  more  or 
less  in  certain  parts  of  the  country  for  some  years. 

Another  method  of  combating  this  beetle  when  it  be- 
comes sufficiently  abundant  to  justify  treatment  is  to  spread 
a cloth  beneath  the  trees  and  shake  the  bettles  into  it  and 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


39 


then  destroy  them  by  throwing  into  kerosene  or  boiling 
water. 

The  technical  description  of  this  species  is  by  Say,  (12). 

SYNETA  ALBJDA  Leconte. 

This  insect  has  been  reported  a number  of  times  as  a 
pest  to  fruit  trees  and  the  writer  has  collected  it  at  several 
places.  So  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  learn  it  does  not  oc- 
cur in  our  State  except  in  the  southern  and  western  parts. 
It  has  been  sent  to  us  from  Walla  Walla  and  from  Puyallup, 
Washington.  Reports  of  its  presence  have  also  been  received 


A 

Fig.  3.  Syneta  alhida  Leconte.  A,  adult  female  (X8);  B,  pupa  (X8). 
(After  Wilson  14,  a). 

from  Vancouver  and  Des  Moines,  Washington.  The  writer 
collected  it  in  large  numbers  at  Puyallup,  in  May,  1915. 

These  beetles  were  present  in  considerable  numbers  on 
large  apple  trees  at  Walla  Walla  in  April,  1913.  They  were 
observed  eating  small  holes  in  the  leaves  of  the  trees  at  that 
time.  When  disturbed  they  either  fell  to  the  ground  or  flew 
a short  distance  away.  A female  collected  at  this  time  and 
taken  to  the  entomological  laboratory  deposited  an  egg  on 
the  first  day  of  May. 


40 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


The  writer  observed  great  numbers  of  these  weevils 
feeding  on  the  buds,  leaves  and  blossoms  of  apple  and  cherry 
trees  at  Puyallup,  Washington,  (luring  the  budding  and  blos- 
soming period  in  the  spring  of  1915.  Into  the  buds  they  ate 
holes  which,  when  the  leaves  unfolded,  gave  the  leaves  a 
ragged  or  sometimes  a “shot  hole”  appearance. 

In  May,  1912,  we  received  the  following  from  a corres- 
pondent at  Vancouver,  Washington:  “These  beetles  are  pres- 
ent in  orchards  by  the  millions,  having  already  ruined  the 
plum  crop  and  done  considerable  damage  to  the  Italian 
prunes.” 

From  Des  Moines,  Washington,  we  have  the  following  re- 
port: “It  has  destroyed  the  blossoms  of  fruit  trees — one- 
third  of  the  crop  is  already  destroyed.  When  sprayed  with 
arsenate  of  lead  they  flew  away  anci  soon  returned  again.” 

Although  this  beetle  has  been  present  in  Washington  and 
Oregon  for  a number  of  years  there  are  but  few  references 
to  it  in  entomological  literature.  The  first  mention  we  can 
find  of  it  is  by  Howard  and  Riley  (7)  and  a letter  to  them  by 
an  Oregon  orchardist.  The  letter  by  Mr.  Lewelling,  the  Ore- 
gon grower,  stated  that  the  beetles. were  very  numerous  in 
1892  and  that  they  had  been  present  for  several  years.  In 
their  reply  to  this  letter  Howard  and  Riley  said  that  this  was 
the  first  time  the  beetle  had  been  brought  to  the  attention  of 
economic  entomologists. 

Syneta  albida  was  later  (1893)  collected  in  Oregon  by  A. 
Koebele  (8). 

Wilson,  of  Oregon  (14,  a,  and  b),  discusses  these  beetles 
to  some  length  and  gives  figures  illustrating  the  various 
stages  in  their  development  and  the  nature  of  their  injury. 
He  states  that  the  injury  caused  by  these  insects  is  twofold 
since  the  larvae  feed  to  a certain  extent  on  the  fibrous  roots 
and  the  adults  feed  on  the  foliage,  blossoms  and  fruits  of 
all  kinds  of  fruit  trees.  It  is  doubtful,  however,  whether  the 
injury  caused  by  the  larvae  is  of  much  consequence  since  the 
larvae  are  so  small  and  so  few  in  numbers,  but  the  damage 
done  by  the  adults  is  considerable.  They  are  especially  harm- 
ful to  young  trees  and  grafts,  but  during  certain  seasons! 
they  injure  the  fruit  itself  to  a considerable  extent. 

The  adult  beetles  begin  to  appear  in  March  and  start 
feeding  at  once  upon  the  opening  buds,  later  eating  holes  in 
the  petals  of  the  blossoms,  the  stems  and  the  fruit  as  well 
as  the  leaves.  The  injury  to  the  fruit  causes  it  to  drop  or 
scars  it  so  badly  that  it  is  rendered  unmarketable. 

In  his  life  history  studies  Wilson  found  that  the  winter 
is  passed  in  the  larval  stage  in  earthen  cells  from  six  to  four- 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


41 


teen  inches  below  the  surface  of  the  ground.  The  larvae 
transform  to  pupae  during  March,  April  and  the  first  half  of 
May.  The  pupal  stage  lasts  on  an  average  of  about  fifteen  or 
sixteen  days.  The  adult  beetles  appear  from  about  the  mid- 
dle of  March  to  the  middle  of  June.  The  beetles  are  more 
active  during  bright,  sunny  weather  than  at  other  times  and 
can  be  seen  flying  about  the  orchard  and  feeding  on  the  pet- 
als and  foliage.  In  one  respect  these  beetles  are  much  bbp 
the  weevils  discussed  earlier  in  this  paper  in  that  they  fall 
to  the  ground  when  disturbed,  “resembling,’^  as  Wilson  has 
observed,  “a  sudden  fall  of  petals.” 

The  larvae  are  seldom  found  in  an  orchard  in  sod  but  us- 
ually in  cultivated  land.  The  eggs  are  deposited  promiscu- 
ously over  the  surface  of  the  ground  with  little  attempt  to 
hide  them.  The  larvae  may  be  found  at  all  times  of  the  year. 
In  August  all  sizes  can  be  found  and  in  October  many  seem  to 
be  nearly  mature,  while  some  are  about  half  grown. 

The  following  host  plants  are  mentioned  by  Wilson:  apple, 
cherry,  gooseberry,  hawthorn,  hazelnut,  peach,  pear,  plum, 
prune,  quince,  wild  crabapple  and  willow. 

In  his  experiments  for  controlling  these  beetles  Wilson 
found  that  although  they  breed  mostly  in  cultivated  land  it 
would  not  necessarily  follow  that  it  would  be  advisable  to 
grow  a sod  in  the  orchard,  for  the  h^rm  this  practice  would 
do  to  the  trees  would  more  than  offset  the  good  derived. 
Spraying  with,  arsenicals  was  found  ineffective  and  for  the 
most  part  impracticable.  When  used  at  the  of  four  nounds 
of  arsenate  of  lead  to  fifty  gallons  of  water  the  arsenical  spray 
will  kill  the  beetles,  but  they  seem  to  avoid  it  and  feed  on  the 
opening  unpoisoned  foliage  instead.  Wilsou  rpmmrnends  that 
if  the  arsenical  spray  is  used  on  apples  it  should  be  added  to 
the  pink  scab  spray;  if  it  is  used  on  pear,  cherry  and  other 
fruits  it  should  be  applied  just  after  the  petals  fall. 

Horn  (6.e)  mentions  Svvfta  n Ibid  a as  follows:  “Occurs 
in  Oregon,  Washington  and  California  as  far  south  as  Ala- 
meda.” 

The  original  description  of  Syneta  albida  is  by  Leconte 
(10,  a). 

SUMMARY. 

During  the  past  few  years  considerable  complaint  has 
been  made,  by  orchardists  in  the  state  of  Washington,  of  sev- 
eral species  of  insects  which  destroy  the  buds  of  one- and  two 
year-old  fruit  trees.  Most  of  these  insects  belong  to  the 
Rhyncophora,  or  weevils,  a group  of  the  order  of  beetles. 
Some  species  were  little  known  and  others  entirely  new  to 


42 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


science.  Several  species  are  here  discussed  for  the  first  time. 
But  little  is  known  of  the  life  history  and  habits  of  any  of  the 
several  species.  Several  species  are  native  feeders  on  the 
sagebrush,  Artemisia  tridentata,  and  when  their  native  food 
is  removed  from  the  land  and  fruit  trees  substituted,  the 
weevils*  feed  upon  them  as  their  only  available  food.  The 
weevils  proper  are  found  only  on  new  land  or  that  which  has 
not  been  cleared  of  the  native  flora  longer  than  one  or  two 
years. 

Inasmuch  as  the  weevils  are  wingless  and  cannot  fly  they 
can  be  prevented  from  destroying  the  buds  by  the  use  of 
paper-cone  tree  protectors.  The  winged  beetles  cannot  be 
controlled  in  this  manner  but  must  be  destroyed  or  p^^even^ed 
from  gaining  access  to  the  trees  by  the  various  methods  as 
discussed  under  each  species. 

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 


(1)  Casey,  T.  L. 

1888.  (a)  Ann.  N.  York  Ac.  Sci.,  vol.  IV.,  p.  279. 

1891.  (b)  Ann.  N.  York  Ac.  Sci.,  vol.  VI.,  p.  186  . 

(2)  Chase,  G.  M. 

1911.  (a)  Seventh  Ann.  Rpt.  Wash.  State  Hort. 

Assn.,  pp.  19-21;  91-93. 

1911.  (b)  Better  Fruit,  Hood  River,  Oregon,  vol.  V., 

No.  10,  pp.  93-94. 

(3)  Chittenden,  F.  H. 

1873.  Proc.  Ac.  Nat.  Sci.,  p.  36. 

(4)  Cordley,  A.  B. 

1897.  (a)  Oregon  Agr.  Exp.  Sta.  Bui.  No.  45,  p.  122. 

1899.  (b)  Oregon  Agriculturist  and  Rural  North- 

west, June,  p.  292. 

(5)  Crotch,  G.  R. 

1873.  Proc.  Ac.  Nat.  Sci.,  p.  36. 

(6)  Horn,  G.  H. 

1876.  (a)  Proc.  Am.  Philos.  Soc.,  vol.  15,  No.  96,  p. 

48;  (b)  p.  55;  (c)  pp.  71-72;  (d)  pp.  150-151. 

1892.  (e)  Trans.  Am.  Ent.  Soc.  vol.  XIX.,  p.  5;  (f) 
p.  203. 

(7)  Howard,  L.  0.  and  Riley,  C.  V. 

1892  Insect  Life,  vol.  4,  p.  396. 

.A. 

1894.  U.  S.  Dept.  Agr.  Ent.  Bui.  32,  0.  S:,  p:  35: 


(8) 


BUD  WEEVILS  OF  WASHINGTON 


43 


(9)  Kruger,  P.  G. 

1912.  Better  Fruit,  Hood  River,  Oregon,  vol.  VI. 
No.  11,  p.  40. 

(10)  Leconte,  J.  L. 

1857.  (a)  Pacific  R.  R.  Rpt.,  p.  66. 

1876.  (b)  Proc.  Am.  Philos.  Soc.,  vol.  15,  No.  96,  p. 

68;  (c)  p.  217. 

18 — . (d)  Ann.  of  the  Lyc.  of  Nat.  History,  N.  York, 

vol.  5,  p.  132. 

(11)  Pierce,  W.  D. 

1910.  (a)  Jour.  Econ.  Ent.,  vol.  3,  No.  4,  p.  365. 

1910.  (b)  Proc.  U.  S.  Nat.  Mus.,  vol.  37,  p.  348;  (c) 
p.  355;  (d)  p.  356. 

1913.  (e)  Ibid,  vol  45,  pp.  376-377;  (f)  pp.  380-381; 
(g)  p.  384;  (h)  p.  385;  (i)  pp.  392-393;  (j)  p.  397. 

(12)  Say,  Thomas. 

1824.  Jour,  of  Ac.  Nat.  Sci.  Phil.,  vol.  3,  p.  247. 

(13)  Wickham,  H.  F. 

1889.  (a)  Entomologica  Americana,  vol.  V.,  No.  4, 
p.  78. 

1890.  (b)  Ibid,  vol.  VI.,  No.  5,  p.  86. 

(14)  Wilson,  H.  F. 

1913.  (a)  Biennial  Crop  Pest  and  Hort.  Rpt.  Oregon 

Agr.  Exp.  Sta.,  pp.  160-161. 

1915.  (b)  Ibid,  vol.  2,  pp.  96-101. 

(15)  Yothers,  M.  A. 

1915.  Eleventh  Ann.  Rpt.  Wash.  State  Hort.  Assn., 
pp. '27-30. 


■ v.  M,  • ■ v-.", 


PLATE  1. 

Fig-.  1,  Tosastes  cinerascens  Pierce.  Female,  (X6). 
FMg.  2.  Mimetes  setulosvs  Schoenheer.  Female,  (X6). 
Fig.  3.  Melamomphus  luteus  Horn.  Female.  fX6). 
Fig.  4.  Panscopus  aequalis  Horn.  Female,  (XB). 

Fig.  5.  Geoderces  mekmothrix  Kirby.  Female,  (X6). 
Fig.  6.  Mylacus  saccatus  Leconte.  Female,  (X6). 

Fig.  7.  Cercopeus  artew.isiae  Pierce.  (X8b2)- 
Fig.  8.  Tychiufi  lineelhifi  Leconte.  (X7). 


PLATE  II. 

Fig,  1.  Cleomis  lobigerius  Casey.  (X3I4)- 
Fig.  2.  Cleonus  quadrilineatus  Chev.  (X3). 

Fig.  3.  Eusattus  rnuricatus  Leconte.  (X3%). 

Fig.  4.  Cotalpa  granicollis  Hald.  (X2L). 

Fig.  5.-  Glyptoscelis  alternata  Crotch.  (X4). 

Fig.  6.  Polyphylla  decemlineata  Say.  (%  natural  size). 

Fig.  7.  Sitona  apacheana  Cfxsey.  (X5)2)- 

Fig.  8.  Melamomphus  nigrescens  Pierce.  (X5I4)- 


Fig.  1.  Cercopeus  artemisiae  feeding  on  buds  and  cut  surface  of 
apple  twig.  (About  natural  size). 

Fig.  2.  Cleonus  lohigerinus,  side  view  of  head.  (X6%). 

Fig.  3.  Cleonus  quadrilineatus,  side  view  of  head.  (X7^). 

Fig.  4..  Eggs  of  Mimetes  setulosus  on  Artemisia  tridentata.  (X2). 

Fig.  5.  Female  Panscopus  aequalis  ovipositing  in  fold  of  apple  leaf. 
(X8). 

Fig.  6.  Eggs  of  Panscopus  aequalis  on  apple  leaf.  (X20). 

Fig.  7.  Front  view  of  head  of  young  larva  of  P.  aequalis.  (XlOO). 


Fig.  8.  Apple  leaves  in  which  eggs  of  Panscopus  aequalis  were  de- 
posited. (X%  natural  size). 

Fig.  9.  Characteristic  injury  to  apple  tree  buds  caused  by  Tosastes 
cinerascens.  (X%  natural  size). 

Fig.  10.  A,  Larva  of  Tosastes  cinerascens  about  two  days  old.  (X60); 

B front  view  of  head  of  larva,  (X60);  C,  egg  of  T.  ciner- 
ascens, (X18). 


V 


' * ' ■■ ' ■>  ' 


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■ * a 

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i 

* 


,1 


‘^A 


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It^l  t 


/.i: 


' •>  - ',T 

•'.'  i'-. 


av/lft  ovrt;  4«; 
%^:ul  rfe|(oa 


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s 


PLATE  V. 


Pig.  II.  A,  Female  T.  cinerascens  (X5^);  B,  male  (X5^);  C,  ventral 
abdominal  segments  of  female  (X15);  D,  ventral  seg- 
ments of  male  at  the  same  magnification;  E,  ovipositor 
of  T.  cinerascenes  exerted  (side  view)  (X25);  F,  oviposi- 
tor shown  from  upper  or  dorsal  side. 


■4 


PLATE  VI. 


Fig.  12.  Characteristic  work  and  attitude  of  T.  cinerascens  (Natural 
size). 

Fig.  13.  Extreme  case  of  injury  by  T.  cinerascens  to  the  buds  and 
bark  of  young  apple  tree  (Natural  size). 

Fig.  14.  A comparison  of  the  number  of  weevils  on  sod  and  culti- 
vated land. 

Fig.  15.  Egg  of  Cotalpa  granicollis  (X35). 

Fig.  16.  Wing  of  Glyptoscelis  alternata  (X7). 

Flig.  17.  Egg  of  G.  alternata  (X23). 

Fig.  18.  Eggs  of  G.  alternata  on  sage  leaf  (X2). 


; \ 

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Vi 


k..ii 


'iW. 


i»t;v  y ' 

fm:-0 :0 


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^■r;'  'j:T,.}  .”,.  ..)  - ! '■  r.  ^ . 

6lft^5y'f  oJl  ST':-.  , .'V  V ' 

'.'  -.  .jj  I'-tf  r,  j. 


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A.  ' 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON. 


DIVISON  OF  BOTANY 


Preliminary  Note  on  Leaf  Invasions 
by  Bacillus  amylovorus 

By 

FREDERICK  D.  HEALD 


BULLETIN  NO.  125 
September,  1915 


All  Bulletins  of  this  station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  Director 


Board  of  Control 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  College),  Secretary  ex-Officio Pullman 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

R.  C,  McCroskey  Garfield 


Experiment  Station  Staff 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D.  . . 
Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A.  . . 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M.  . . 

A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D 

O.  M.  Morris,  M.  S 

Geo.  Severance,  B.  S.  . 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S.  . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S..  . . 

W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E G.  Schafer,  M.  S.... 
Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S.  . . . 
F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D.  . . , 

C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B.... 

J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 

M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S.  . . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  M.  S.  . 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S.  . . . 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S.... 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S. . . . 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

...  .Assistant  Entomologist 
....Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. . .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
.Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
....Assistant  Horticulturist 
Assistant  Chemist 


Preliminary  Note  on  Leaf  Invasions 
by  Bacillus  amylovorus 

BY 

FREDERICK  D.  HEARD,  PATHOLOGIST. 


HISTORICAL  STATEMENT. 

Investigators  who  have  made  a special  study  of  fire  blight 
or  pear  blight  due  to  Bacillus  amylovorus  agree  that  the  dis- 
ease manifests  itself  in  the  four  following  ways  according  to 
the  parts  invaded: 

1.  Blossom  blight,  due  to  original  infection  through  the 
nectaries  by  bacteria  disseminated  by  insects  which  visit  the 
flowers  in  search  of  food. 

2.  Twig  blight,  due  to  infection  through  wounds  made 
by  insects  or  other  agents  in  the  succulent  tissue  of  terminal 
shoots. 

3.  Fruit  blight,  due  to  primary  infections  through  some 
wound  or  migration  of  the  bacteria  up  the  pedicel  into  the 
pulp  of  the  fruit. 

4.  Cankers  or  body  blight,  due  to  migration  of  the  ba- 
cillus down  fruit  spurs,  from  twigs  or  water  sprouts  showing 
twig  blight  or  by  primary  infections  through  wounds. 

The  only  intimation  that  the  writer  has  found  concern- 
ing the  probability  of  direct  invasion  through  the  leaves  is 
contained  in  the  following  statement^  by  Duggar: 

“Nevertheless,  it  is  also  true  that  infection  may  result 
through  growing  twigs.  Biting  or  piercing  insects  are  doubt- 
less of  much  importance  in  spreading  the  disease  in  this  way. 
Injuries  and  sometimes,  perhaps,  even  water-pores  may  be 
the  seats  of  infection.  In  general,  however,  it  is  certainly 
true  that  the  presence  of  germs  upon  the  surface  of  healthy 
tissues  would  not  result  in  the  production  of  disease  in  those 
parts.” 

The  above  statement  appears  to  admit  the  possibility  of 
invasion  through  the  water-pores,  although  no  observations 
or  experiments  are  offered  in  substantiation  of  this  behavior 
of  the  blight  bacillus. 

The  general  opinion  of  pathologists  in  regard  to  leaf  in- 


1.  Duffirar,  B.  M.  Fungrous  diseases  of  plants,  p.  125,  1909. 


4 


PRELIMINARY  NOTE  ON  LEAF  INVASIONS 


vasion  is  that  presented  by  Waite  h He  states  first  that 
“while  the  bacteria  themselves  rarely  kill  the  leaves,  at  most 
only  occasionally  attacking  stems  and  midribs  of  the  young- 
est ones,  all  the  foliage  of  the  blighted  branches  must  of 
course  eventually  die.”  A proper  interpretation  of  this 
statement  would  mean  that  sometimes  the  bacteria  migrate 
from  the  stem  up  the  petiole  and  into  the  mid-rib  of  the  leaf, 
but  certainly  does  not  suggest  a downward  migration  from 
an  original  leaf  infection.  Concerning  the  origin  of  twig 
blight  in  nursery  stock  or  vonng  trees  which  have  not  yet 
blossomed  the  same  author^  writes,  “Another  way  in 
which  the  blight  gains  entrance  is  through  the  tins  of  grow- 
ing shoots.  In  the  nursery  when  the  trees  are  not  flowering 
this  is  the  usual  mode  of  infection.*’ 

It  is  generally  conceded  that  the  infections  in  the  vege- 
tative shoots  are  c^msed  bv  b^’cteria  introduced  by  biting  or 
sucking  insects.  Whetzel  and  Stewart^  write.  “Our  own 
observations  tend  to  show  that  the  aphides  and  leaf  hoppers 
are  largely  the  responsible  agents  in  introducing  the  bacteria 
into  the  tips  of  growing  shoots,  while  the  same  insects  and 
the  curculio  frequently  introduce  them  into  wounds  which 
they  make  in  the  fruit,  thus  giving  rise  to  Fruit  Blight.”  The 
same  writers^  continue,  “During  rainy  weather  the  bac- 
teria ooze  from  these  blighted  blossoms  and  are  carried  by 
plant  lice,  leaf  hoppers,  and  other  sucking  insects  to  the  tips 
of  the  twigs  that  are  now  growing  rapidly;  here  in  sucking 
the  sap  the  insect  introduces  the  bacteria  into  the  tender 
tissues  where  they  multinly  rapidly,  producing  in  a few  days 
the  characteristic  ‘Twig  Blight.’  ” 

The  possibility  of  either  stomatal  or  water-pore  invasion 
would  seem  to  be  excluded  by  WhetzeH  as  is  evidenced  by 
the  following  quotations:  “As  a general  deduction,  then,  it 
may  be  stated  that  infection  occurs  only  through  a wound  of 
some  sort.”  This  opinion  is  presented  in  a discusion  of  the 
origin  of  body  blight.  Whetzel  and  Stewart^  state  later 
that,  “It  is  certain  that  unless  these  bacteria  are  introduced 
into  the  trees  by  insects  or  by  the  grower  himself,  no  blight 
will  result.” 


1.  Waite,  M.  B.  The  cause  and  prevention  of  pear  blight.  Yearbook  U. 

s.  Dept,  of  Agr.,  1895,  p.  295-296.  1896 

2.  Ibid,  p.  2 97. 

3.  Whetzel,  H.  H.  and  Stewart,  V.  B.  Fire  blight  of  pears,  apples. 

Quinces,  etc.  Bui.  Cornell  Univ.  Agr.  Exp.  Sta.,  272:  39-40.  1909. 

4.  Ibid,  p.  41. 

5.  Whetzel,  H.  H.  The  blight  canker  of  apple  trees.  Bui.  Cornell  Unlv. 

Agr.  Exp.  Stat.,  236:  119.  1906. 

6.  Ibid,  43. 


Fig.  1.  Apple  leaves  showing  characteristic  terminal  and  mar- 
ginal invasions  by  Bacillus  amylovorus. 


Fig.  2.  Apple  leaves  showing  central  lesions  caused  by  Bacillus 
amylovorus. 


BY  BACILLUS  AMYLOVORUS. 


5 


The  recent  investigations  by  Bachmann^  on  the  migra- 
tion of  Bacillus  amylovorus  in  the  host  tissue  would  seem 
to  pave  the  way  for  stomatal  or  water-pore  invasion,  since 
this  investigator  has  shown  that  the  bacteria  migrate  in  the 
intercellular  spaces,  rather  than  by  penetration  of  the  cells. 
It  may  be  noted  also  that  this  writer  has  shown  that  the 
blight  bacdlus  enters  the  vascular  bundles  and  migrates 
along  the  vessels  of  the  xylem. 

A statement  made  by  Arthur  in  reporting  on  his  early 
investigations  of  blight^  has  not  been  disputed  by  later 
workers.  “Bacteria  can  not  be  found  swarming  in  the  leaves 
as  in  the  bark  and  wood;  the  conditions  do  not  seem  favorable 
for  their  development.” 

OBSERVATIONS  AND  EXPERIMENTS  RELATING  TO 
LEAF  INVASIONS. 

During  the  past  season  the  writer  has  had  an  opportun- 
ity to  visit  a number  of  the  apple  and  pear  growing  regions 
of  Eastern  Washington.  As  a result  of  some  preliminary 
studies  made  in  the  field  and  supplemented  by  laboratory 
tests  it  can  be  stated  that  leaf  invasions  by  Bacillus  amylov- 
oruLS  are  common. 

The  first  observations  were  made  at  North  Yakima  on 
July  6th.  Leaves  of  Bartlett  pears  showing  lesions  advancing 
from  the  edge  or  tips  were  collected.  During  the  following 
night  there  was  a shower  and  similiar  material  collected  early 
the  next  morning  showed  drops  of  bacterial  exudate.  On 
July  10th  and  11th  an  examination  was  made  of  blight  in- 
fested apple  orchards  in  the  vicinity  of  Spokane.  Very  simi- 
lar leaf  invasions  were  found  upon  Wagener,  Jonathan,  and 
Rome  Beauty  trees.  The  orchards  at  North  Yakima  were  ir- 
rigated, while  those  visited  at  Spokane  were  not.  Later  col- 
lections have  been  made  at  Walla  Walla,  Kennewick,  and 
Prosser  from  both  pear  and  apple  trees. 

In  the  majority  of  cases  the  leaf  infections  start  at  the 
margin  and  are  either  lateral  or  terminal,  (Fig.  1)  although 
central  lesions  have  been  found  in  some  cases  on  apple 
leaves.  (Fig.  2).  The  lesions  on  the  apple  leaves  are  a light 
brown  or  yellowish  brown  and  frequently  show  a faint  purpl- 
ish border  at  the  advancing  edge.  In  acitive  lesions  the  ad- 
vancing edge  shows  a narrow  watery  zone.  Those  on  pear 


1.  Bachinann,  Freda  M.  The  inij^ration  of  Bacillus  amylovoiais  in  the 

liost  tissue.  I’liy  t holoay  •!:  ;>-i:i.  I'.iFl. 

2.  Arthur,  .J.  C.  l^ear  blight  and  its  causes.  Am.  Naturalist,  p.  1178. 

1885. 


6 


PRELIMINARY  NOTE  ON  LEAF  INVASIONS 


leaves  are  darker  in  color  and  exhibit  a mottling  of  various 
shades  of  dirty  brown.  There  is  a noticeable  tendency  for 
the  bacteria  to  advance  more  rapidly  down  the  midrib  or  cer- 
tain lateral  veins,  so  that  many  young  lesions  are  more  or  less 
triangular  in  outline.  In  some  cases  the  migration  of  the 
bacteria  can  be  noticed  along  certain  veins  in  advance  of  the 
general  border  of  the  dead  area. 

All  stages  of  leaf  invasions  have  been  found  from  slight 
marginal  infections  to  lesions  which  have  advanced  through- 
out the  entire  leaf  blade  and  down  the  petiole.  These  leaf 
infections  were  not  rare  but  it  was  possible  to  find  dozens  of 
them  on  a single  five-year-old  tree.  The  writer  is  of  the 
opinion  that  the  'bacteria  enter  the  intercellular  spaces 
through  the  water-pores  and  also  by  the  stomata  to  some  ex- 
tent and  later  penetrate  the  vessels  in  the  way  suggested  by 
Bachmannh  It  remains  for  further  investigation  to  def- 
initely substantiate  this  view. 

It  is  an  easy  matter  to  verify  the  presence  of  the  bacteria 
by  microscopic  examination.  Dissections  made  from  the  ad- 
vancing edge  of  a lesion  give  the  organisms  in  large  numbers 
and  if  the  tissue  selected  includes  one  of  the  larger  veins 
they  can  be  seen  to  ooze  out  from  the  broken  ends  of  the 
vessels.  A sufficient  number  of  lesions  have  been  examined 
to  leave  no  doubt  as  to  the  constant  presence  of  the  bacteria. 

The  lesions  have  also  been  tested  by  cultures  for  the 
presence  of  living  bacteria.  Mr.  H.  W.  Samson,  Horticult- 
ural Inspector  at  Spokane,  assisted  in  collecting  material  and 
also  sent  fresh  specimens  to  our  laboratory  for  use.  It  was 
at  his  solicitation  that  the  writer  first  visited  Spokane  to 
make  field  observations.  In  many  of  the  isolations  tried  the 
bacteria  were  found  to  be  dead,  but  pure  cultures  were  ob- 
tained from  others  by  the  poured  plate  method.  (Fig.  3). 
Since  the  study  of  these  leaf  lesions  was  not  begun  until 
July,  this  condition  is  what  one  would  expect,  as  at  this  time 
of  the  year  the  bacteria  are  dead  in  a good  per  cent  of  the 
twig  infections.  In  some  cases  where  microscopic  examina- 
tion showed  an  abundance  of  bacteria,  the  cultures  showed 
that  only  a relatively  small  per  cent  were  alive.  It  seems 
probable  that  a certain  per  cent  of  the  leaf  lesions  will  be- 
have like  the  twig  lesions,  and  the  bacteria  become  active  in 
them  after  the  return  of  more  favorable  conditions. 

The  pure  cultures  isolated  from  the  leaf  lesions  have 
been  used  for  making  inoculations  into  seedling  apple  trees. 


1.  Ibid,  p.  7. 


Fig.  3.  Apple  leaf  with  a well-developed  lesion  showing  place 
(a)  from  which  tissue  was  removed  to  make  isolation  of  Bacillus 
amylovorus  by  the  poured  plate  method. 


BY  BACILLUS  AMYLOVORUS. 


7 


The  trees  to  be  inoculated  were  placed  in  the  inocluation 
chamber  and  kept  well  watered  for  48  hours  previous  to  in- 
troducing the  bacteria  into  the  tips  just  back  of  the  terminal 
bud.  The  inoculations  were  made  July  Blst,  and  by  August 
8th  the  seedlings  exhibited  hre  blight  in  severe  and  typical 
form.  The  microscopic  examinations  and  the  results  from  in- 
oculations leave  no  doubt  that  the  leaf  lesions  described  above 
were  due  to  Bacillus  amylovoriis. 

To  what  extent  twig  blight  is  caused  by  the  advance  of 
the  bacteria  down  the  leal  petiole  and  thus  into  the  twig  has 
not  been  determined.  This  must  be  left  undecided  until  the 
work  of  another  season.  It  seems  probable  that  we  have  here 
an  explanation  for  many  infections  which  have  been  at- 
tributed to  insects.  This  information  is  also  of  somiO  funda- 
mental importance  as  it  may  explain  why  blight  reappears  in 
certain  cases  when  all  cankers  and  twig  blight  have  been  re- 
moved. It  certainly  complicates  the  practice  of  blight  con- 
trol by  the  cutting  out  method. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON. 


DIVISON  OF  BOTANY 


Bunt  or  Stinking  Smut  of  Wtieat 

By 

FREDERICK  D.  HEALD 
and 

H.  M.  WOOLMAN 


BULLETIN  NO.  126 
November,  1915 


All  Bulletins  of  this  station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  Director 


*The  Office  of  Cereal  Investigations,  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry,  U.  S, 
Department  of  Agriculture,  has  contributed  $300  per  year  toward  the 
expenses  of  these  investigations. 


Board  of  Control 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  College),  Secretary  ex-Officio Pullman 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 


Experiment  Station  Staff 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D . . . 
Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A... 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M... 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D 

0.  M.  Morris,  M.  S 

Geo.  Severance,  B.  S. . 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S.  . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S. ... 

W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E G.  Schafer,  M.  S. ... 
Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S.... 
F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D... 
C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B.... 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 
M.  A.  McCall,  M..  S.,..., 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S.  . . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  M.  S.  . 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S.... 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S. . . . 
M.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S.,. 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

Assistant  Entomologist 

. . . .Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. . .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
.i^ssistant  Plant  Pathologist 
. . . .Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


Page 

Introduction 5 

Prevalence  of  Stinking  Smut  5 

Loss  Caused  by  Stinking  Smut 5 

The  Cause  of  Wheat  Smut 6 

Life  History  of  Stinking  Smut 6 

The  Effect  of  Smut  8 

Variation  in  Normal  and  Smutted  Heads  in  Partial- 
ly Smutted  Plants,  Table  1 10 

Variation  in  Varieties  in  Number  of  Completely  and 

Partially  Smutted  Plants,  Table  II 10 

Variation  in  Smutted  and  Partly  Smutted  Berries, 

Table  III 10 

How  a Crop  May  Become  Infected 9 

Smutty  Seed  9 

Clean  Seed  in  Smutty  Soil 11 

Persistence  of  Infective  Power  of  Smut  Balls 

when  Placed  in  the  Soil,  Table  IV 12 

Relation  of  New  Soil  to  Smut,  Table  V 12 

Methods  of  Control  13 

Crop  Rotation  13 

The  Use  of  Clean  Seed 14 

Seed  Treatment  15 

Relation  of  Treatment  to  Reinfection,  Table  VI.  . . 17 

Cultural  Practices  17 

General  Factors  Influencing  the  Amount  of  Smut.  17 

The  Depth  of  Planting 18 

Effect  of  Depth  of  Planting  on  Amount  of 

of  Smut,  Table  VIII 19 

The  Time  of  Planting 18 

Effect  of  Time  of  Planting  on  Amount  of 

Smut,  Table  VII 19 

Tillage 18 

Breeding  and  Selection  of  Varieties 21 

Comparative  Resistance  of  Winter  Wheats  to 

Smut  Infection,  Table  IX.  and  X 23 

Summary  of  Recommendations 22 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Fig.  1.  The  Loose  Smut  of  Wheat  Caused  by  Ustilago 

tritici,  facing  page 6 

Fig.  2.  Various  Stages  in  the  Germination  of  the  Spores 

of  Stinking  Smut  7 

Fig.  3.  Smutted  and  Normal  Heads  of  Winter  Fife  and 

Hybrid  108,  facing  page 8 

Fig.  4.  Smutted  and  Normal  Heads  of  Turkey  Red  and 

Forty  Fold,  facing  page  8 

Fig.  5.  Partially  Smutted  Berries  of  Red  Russian  and 
Hybrid,  facing  page  10 


Bunt  or  Stinking  Smut  of  Wheat 

By 

F.  D.  Heald  and  H.  M.  Woolman. 


INTRODUCTION. 

Bunt  or  stinking  smut  is  beyond  question  the  most  ser- 
ious disease  of  wheat  in  the  Pacific  Northwest.  This  trouble 
is  very  generally  present  in  the  wheat  fields  of  Washington. 
It  is  the  most  destructive  in  the  Palouse  region  of  Eastern 
Washington  and  adjacent  territory,  and  gradually  decreases 
in  severity  as  one  passes  from  the  more  humid  eastern  part 
of  the  state  to  the  semi-arid  country.  Comparatively  few 
wheat  fields  can  be  found  that  are  entirely  free  from  smut. 
The  disease  may  be  present  in  traces  only  or  a very  high  per- 
centage of  the  heads  may  be  destroyed.  The  amount  of  smut 
varies  from  year  to  year,  but  in  general  the  disease  has  in- 
creased in  prevalence  during  recent  years.  The  general  cli- 
matic conditions  in  the  Palouse  Country  and  the  farming 
methods  practiced  have  been  favorable  for  the  propagation 
of  the  fungus  causing  smut,  so  that  the  disease  has  attained 
greater  severity  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  world,  with  the 
possible  exception  of  Australia.  Whitman  County,  which  is  the 
center  of  the  area  of  severe  smut  infection  of  wheat,  has  pro- 
duced the  highest  average  yield  of  wheat  per  acre  of  any 
county  in  the  United  States.  The  question  may  be  asked, 
'what  would  the  yield  of  Whitman  County  be  without  smut? 
It  is  our  hope  that  the  work  of  the  Experiment  Station  will 
ultimately  bring  an  answer  to  this  question,  not  only  for  this 
favored  county,  but  for  all  other  parts  of  the  state.  While 
smut  will  probably  never  be  eradicated  from  our  fields,  we 
have  every  reason  to  expect  that  careful  methods  and  per- 
sistent efforts  will  so  reduce  its  prevalence  that  it  will  become 
a minor  factor  in  wheat  production,  instead  of  occupying  the 
foreground  as  it  does  at  present. 

An  estimate  of  the  financial  loss  caused  by  wheat  smut  in 
this  state  would  be  purely  a guess,  but  conservative  producers 
place  it  in  the  millions  of  dollars  for  each  season.  The  loss  is 
four  fold:  first,  the  increased  cost  of  production  necessitated 
by  seed  treatment,  soil  sanitation  and  cultural  practices  de- 
signed to  reduce  infection;  second,  the  reduction  in  yield  per 


6 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


acre;  third,  the  lowering  of  grade  or  quality,  and  fourth,  the 
loss  from  separator  fires  caused  by  smut  explosions. 

THE  CAUSE  OF  WHEAT  SMUT. 

Wheat  is  attacked  by  three  different  types  of  smut  which 
produce  entirely  different  effects: 

1.  Loose  smut  caused  by  Ustilago  tritici  (Fig.  1.) 

2.  Bunt  or  stinking  smut  caused  by  either  tritici 

or  Tilletia  foetans. 

3.  Flag  smut  caused  by  Urocystis  tritici. 

The  first  species  of  smut  is  relatively  rare  in  Wasington, 
while  the  third  is  entirely  unknown  in  this  part  of  the  world. 

Bunt  or  stinking  smut  is  caused  by  two  different  species 
of  microscopic  fungi  which  live  as  parasites  in  the  wheat  plant. 
Both  are  essentially  similar  in  their  effects  and  their  life  his- 
tory. Tilletia  tritici,  or  the  rough-spored  variety,  is  the  com- 
mon stinking  smut  of  the  Pacific  regions,  while  Tilletia 
foetans,  or  the  smooth-spored  species,  is  the  one  generally 
found  in  the  Eastern  United  States. 

The  smut  “berries”  or  “balls”  from  an  infected  head  con- 
tain millions  of  minute  bodies,  the  spores  or  “seeds’*  of  the 
smut  fungus.  These  reproduce  the  smut  in  somewhat  the 
same  way  that  a true  seed  develops  into  a new  plant.  In  a 
threshing  operation  the  dust  that  issues  from  the  separator 
is  laden  with  these  spores  in  countless  numbers,  due  to  the 
breaking  of  many  smut  balls.  Many  of  the  loose  spores 
not  carried  away  will  lodge  upon  the  surface  of  normal 
grains,  the  groove,  or  “suture,”  and  the  “brush,”  or  hair  tuft 
at  the  terminal  end,  serving  as  resting  places  for  large  num- 
bers. Wheat  from  an  infected  field  will  also  contain  many 
unbroken  balls,  and  spores  from  these  may  be  liberated  later 
by  the  rupture  of  the  thin  enclosing  membrane.  A single 
smut  ball  of  average  size  contains  a sufficient  number  of 
spores  to  give  one  for  each  grain  of  wheat  in  five  or  six  bush- 
els, or  if  scattered  over  an  acre  would  give  75  spores  for  each 
spuare  foot.  It  takes  eight  smut  spores  to  equal  the  diame- 
ter of  a human  hair.  These  comparisons  are  given  to  em- 
phasize the  minuteness  of  the  smut  spores,  and  call  attention 
to  the  difficulty  of  excluding  such  minute  bodies  from  the 
surface  of  seed  wheat.  Normal  wheat  grains  from  an  infected 
field  may  have  so  many  spores  lodged  on  their  surface  as  to 
give  them  a dark  color,  but  other  grains  which  show  no  dif- 
ference in  color  to  the  naked  eye  may  still  contain  a suffic- 
ient number  of  spores  to  produce  a smutty  crop  if  seed  treat- 
ment is  not  practiced. 


Fig.  1.  The  1 ose  smut  of  wheat  caused  by  Ustilago  tritici. 


Fig.  2.  Various  stages  in  the  germination  of  spores  of  stinking  smut, 
Tilletia  tritici.  a.  Spore  surface  showing  characteristic  reticulate 
ridges;  b,  spore  in  early  stage  of  germination  with  young  promycel- 
ium protruding  from  the  ruptured  spore  wall;  c,  a later  stage  in  the 
formation  of  the  promycelium;  d,  mature  promycelium  with  a tuft 
of  H-shaped  sporida,  5,  borne  in  its  summit;  e,  a separated  sporidium 
which  has  produced  secondary  sporida,  ss;  f,  a separated  sporidium 
which  has  given  rise  directly  to  an  infected  thread,  in,  several  sec- 
ondary sporida  which  have  started  to  germinate  or  have  produced 
infection  threads. 


8 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


When  living  smut  spores  are  introduced  into  the  soil 
with  the  seed  wheat  or  exist  in  the  soil  in  which  smut-free 
wheat  is  sown  a certain  percentage  of  the  wheat  plants  are 
likely  to  become  infected.  The  smut  spore  germinates 
(Fig.  2)  and  produces  first  a stage  of  the  smut  plant  in  the 
soil.  This  first  stage  is  called  the  promycelium  and  it  never 
infects  a young  seedling  direct,  but  gives  rise  to  secondary 
spores  or  sporida  (Fig.  2s)  from  which  infection  threads 
may  arise,  or  secondary  sporida  (Fig.  2ss)  may  be  developed 
which  later  produce  infection  threads.  Under  favorable  con- 
ditions one  or  more  infection  threads  penetrate  the  shoot  of 
a young  seedling  and  reach  the  growing  point.  Here  the 
fungus  threads  keep  pace  with  the  growth  of  the  plant,  but 
give  little  or  no  external  evidence  of  their  presence  until  the 
production  of  heads,  when  they  enter  the  ovaries  and  begin 
the  development  of  the  spores  which  reach  maturity  at  or 
slightly  before  harvest  time. 

THE  EFFECT  OF  SMUT. 

Since  this  disease  is  caused  by  an  internal  parasite  it  is 
natural  to  expect  certain  responses  to  its  presence.  We 
should  note  first  that  the  smut  fungus  is  living  at  the  ex- 
pense of  its  host  plant,  the  wheat.  Its  effect  on  the  host 
may  be  summarized  as  follows: 

1.  The  consumption  of  food. 

2.  The  destruction  of  seed  in  the  sporulating  process. 

3.  The  stimulating  or  retarding  effect  on  normal  physio- 
logical processes. 

Badly  smutted  plants  remain  in  many  cases  under  size 
and  produce  fewer  and  smaller  heads  than  normal  plants. 
Observations  and  experiments  lead  to  the  belief  that  stools 
may  harbor  the  smut  fungus,  when  no  smut  develops  in  the 
heads.  In  such  cases  the  mycelium,  or  vegetative  body  of  the 
fungus,  fails  for  some  reason  to  reach  the  heads.  The  con- 
dition might  be  expressed  in  this  way:  In  a young  infected 
seedling  there  is  a race  between  the  smut  fungus  and  the 
growing  points  of  the  flowering  shoots  in  the  upward  growth. 
In  some  cases  the  fungus  falls  behind  and  never  enters  the 
heads,  while  in  others  it  reaches  its  goal  and  penetrates  the 
ovaries. 

The  presence  of  the  smut  causes  certain  deviations  from 
the  normal  in  the  form  of  the  infected  heads.  In  the  club 
varieties  such  as  Hybrid  143  and  others  (Fig.3b) , the  normally 
compact  head  is  changed  to  a more  slender  type.  Fife  or  Blue 
Stem  varieties  and  others  of  a similar  type  do  not  show  such 
a noticeable  change  of  form,  but  infected  heads  have  a more 


Fig-.  3.  a.  Smutted  and  normal  heads  of  Winter  Fife;  b,  smutted  and 
normal  heads  of  Hybrid  108. 


Pig.  4.  a.  Smutted  and  normal  heads  of  Turkey  Red.  In  this  variety 
the  awns  on  the  smutted  head  break  off  easily  since  they  are  very 
brittle,  b.  Smutted  and  normal  heads  of  Forty  Fold. 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT 


9 


loose  or  open  appearance  due  to  the  divergence  of  the  glumes 
(T  igs,  da  and  caused  by  the  enlargement  of  the  smutted 
berries.  Especially  in  the  TTie  and  ulue  Stem  varieties  the 
infected  heads  previous  to  maturity  exhibit  a darker  green 
color,  and  remain  green  longer  than  normal  heads.  In  some 
varieties  the  infected  heads  stand  erect,  when  normal  ones 
begin  to  droop  as  a result  of  the  increasing  weight  of  the 
ripening  gram. 

The  most  evident  injury  from  wheat  smut  is  due  to  the 
destruction  of  the  gram  or  “berry”  in  the  production  of 
spores.  The  smut  fungus  enters  the  young  ovary  and  uses  up 
the  food  that  is  ordinarily  accumulated  and  at  the  same  time 
destroys  the  embryo,  so  that  a fully  smutted  grain  consists 
of  only  the  brown  outer  seed  layer  (pericarp)  enclosing  the 
mass  of  smut  spores. 

A plant  may  be  wholly  or  partially  smutted,  that  is,  all 
heads  produced  by  a given  stool  may  be  smutted  or  only 
part  of  them  may  be  invaded.  The  completeness  of  smutting 
varies  with  the  different  varieties  and  with  the  same  variety 
fluctuates  to  some  extent,  apparently  being  influenced  by  the 
conditions  which  prevail  during:  development.  The  following 
tabulations  will  show  this  variation  (Tables  I.  and  II.).  A 
smutted  plant  frequently  produces  heads  which  are  only 
partially  smutted,  that  is,  some  grains  may  be  normal,  while 
others  are  infected.  The  normal  grains  may  be  variously 
distributed,  bearing  no  definite  relation  to  position.  Partial- 
ly smutted  grams  are  sometimes  very  common  (see  Table  III.) 
and  the  degree  of  smutting  varies  from  those  which  show  a 
minute  black  speck  to  those  in  which  nearly  the  entire  grain 
is  involved.  (Fig.  5).  Heads  have  been  found  which  showed 
only  a single  partially  smutted  “berry,”  all  the  others  being 
uninfected.  The  question  is  naturally  suggested  at  this  point 
as  to  whether  there  may  not  be  an  invisible  infection,  since 
there  are  all  degrees  of  visible  infection.  The  production  of 
partially  smutted  berries  is  much  more  common  in  some  fields 
than  in  others,  and  suggests  a possible  explanation  for  some 
of  the  ineffective  results  of  seed  treatment. 

HOW  A CROP  MAY  BECOME  INFECTED. 

The  information  available  at  the  present  time  shows 
that  a crop  may  become  infected  with  smut  in  a number  of 
different  ways.  In  some  fields  it  is  probable  that  the  smut 
spores  come  from  a single  source,  while  in  other  fields  their 
origin  may  be  from  two  or  more  sources.  Smut  was  origin- 
ally introduced  with  the  seed  and  many  farmers  are  still 
planting  smut  every  season  with  their  seed  wheat.  Wheat 


10 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


TABLE  I. 

Showing  Variation  in  Number  of  Normal  and  Smutted  Heads  in  Par- 
tially Smutted  Plants. 


Hybrid  143 

Forty  Fold 

No.  of 
plant 

Normal  Heads 

Smutted  Heads 

Normal  Heads 

Smutted  Heads 

1 

2 

4 

1 

1 

2 

3 

2 

2 

4 

3 

2 

4 

3 

11 

4 

4 

5 

4 

6 

5 

4 

2 

8 

10 

6 

6 

3 

1 

14 

7 

4 

3 

3 

1 

8 

10 

1 

10 

1 

9 

8 

1 

1 

6 

10 

6 

20 

5 

8 

TABLE  II. 

Showing  the  Number  of  Completely  Smutted  and  Partially  Smutted 
Plants  in  Several  Varieties.  Six  rod  rows  of  each  variety. 


Variety 

dumber  of 
normal 
plants 

Number  of 
completely 
smutted 
plants 

Number  of 
partially 
smutted 
plants 

Red  Russian  

129 

127 

135 

Forty  B''oia  

133 

155 

158 

'J’urkey  Red  

117 

57 

358 

Winter  File  

43 

414 

82 

Hybrid  60  

37 

494 

58 

Hybrid  108  

45 

299 

63 

Hybrid  123  

34 

394 

72 

Hybrid  .143  

15 

369 

1 20 

TABLE  III. 

Showing  the  Relative  Percentage  of  Smutted,  Partially  Smutted  and 
Smut-Free  Berries  in  20  Heads. 


Variety 

Number  of 
smutted 
berries 

Number  of 
partially 
smutted 
berries 

Number  of 
smut-free 
berries 

Total  No. 
of 

berries 

Red  Rusian  

725 

33 

219 

977 

Forty  Fold  

735 

35 

253 

1023 

Hybrid  128  

1001 

11 

128 

1040 

Early  Wilbur  

580 

7 

159 

746 

Fig.  5.  a.  Partially  smutted  berries  of  Red  Russian  wheat.  /;,  Par- 
tially smutted  berries  of  Hybrid  128. 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


11 


taken  from  a smutty  crop  will  have  countless  numbers  of 
loose  spores  adhering  to  the  grains,  in  many  cases  visible  to 
the  naked  eye,  m other  cases  too  few  to  be  noticeable  except 
by  the  aid  of  a microscope. 

Wheat  from  an  infected  field  will  contain  a certain  num- 
ber of 'unbroken  smut  balls,  the  number  varying  with  the 
severity  of  infection  and  the  variety  of  wheat.  These  un- 
broken smut  balls  are  always  a source  of  danger,  even  when 
the  seed  is  treated  with  fungicides  previous  to  sowing.  In 
seed  treatment  the  fungicide  does  not  reach  the  interior  of 
the  smut  ball,  and  they  are  frequently  broken  during  the 
seeding  process  and  the  spores  scattered  over  the  grain. 

The  partly  smutted  berries  are  also  a source  of  contamin- 
ation, and  if  present  in  seed  wheat  to  any  amount  may  rend- 
er seed  treatment  ineffective.  The  partly  smutted  grains 
show  little  or  no  variation  from  normal  in  either  size  or 
weight  and  would  not  be  removed  in  the  ordinary  processes 
of  cleaning. 

There  are  also  chances  for  the  infection  of  a crop  with 
smut  if  absolutely  smut-free  seed  is  employed.  In  such  a 
case  there  are  two  possible  sources  of  infection:  first,  soil  in- 
fection from  a previous  smutty  crop;  second,  soil  infection 
from  wind-blown  spores.  If  wheat  follows  wheat  and  the  first 
crop  was  smutted,  the  soil  will  contain  large  numbers  of  smut 
spores.  Some  of  these  are  separated  spores  scattered  at  the 
time  of  harvest  or  later  but  many  are  in  the  form  of  unbroken 
smut  balls,  in  many  cases  connected  with  the  head.  Following 
a harvest  of  a smut-infected  field  a sufficient  number  of  smut 
heads  have  been  found  to  give  570,000  spores  to  each  square 
inch  of  surface.  It  is  known  that  the  spores  in  unbroken 
balls  lying  in  the  open  fields  on  the  surface  of  the  ground  re- 
tain their  viability  for  at  least  one  year,  or  from  harvest  to 
the  following  fall  seeding  time.  Our  experiments  have 
shown,  however,  that  the  separated  spores  from  crushed  smut 
balls  lose  their  infective  power  in  from  two  to  three  months 
provided  the  soil  is  moist  and  loose.  (Table  IV.),  and  in  no 
case  do  they  survive  a winter.  It  is  not  known  how  long  the 
spores  remain  viable  in  uncrushed  smut  heads  when  plowed 
under.  Some  tests,  however,  of  smut  heads  which  had  been 
buried  through  two  winters  failed  to  give  any  viable  spores. 
Their  duration  of  life  under  such  conditions  probably  depends 
upon  temperature,  depth,  moisture,  and  compactness  of  soil. 

There  is  no  longer  any  doubt  that  under  present  con- 
ditions smut  is  extensively  disseminated  by  the  wind  in  the 
wheat  growing  regions  of  Washington.  The  evidence  for  this 
is  two-fold:  first,  the  actual  determination  of  the  number  of 


12 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT 


TABLE  IV. 

Showing-  the  Persistence  of  the  Infective  Power  of  Smut  Balls  When 
Placed  in  the  Soil. 


Dates  of 
planting 

1914 

Dates  upon 

May  9 1 

which  crushed  smut  balls  were  placed  in  the  soil 
1914-1915 

June  26  1 July  30  1 October  7 1 March  3 

Percentag-e  of  infected  plants 

Sept.  14  ... 

60.0 

Sept.  17  ... 

16.0 

56.0 

83.0 

Sept.  19  ... 

45.0 

88.0 

Sept.  ‘28  ... 

10.0 

44.0 

78.0 

Oct.  .8  

11.0 

20.0 

62.0 

Oot.  8 

32.0 

70.0 

( )ct.  11  .... 

0.7 

0.7 

58.0 

Oct.  18  .... 

8.0 

12.0 

61.0 

Oct.  2F.  

().() 

: 2.0 

14.0 

Oct.  .81  

0.0 

0.0 

6.0 

Nov,  

0.5 

8.0 

Nov.  9 

a.o 

5.0 

72.0 

Nov.  28  

0.0 

2.0 

1915 

i- 

MnrcU  ... 

0.0 

79.0 

March  8 . . . 

0.0 

84.0 

M;irc!^  18  . . 

0.0 

0.0 

; 9 5.0 

Ma  ch  22  .. 

0.0 

0.0 

' 71.0 

April  IS  ... 

0.0 

0.0 

i 9.0 

April  24  . . . 

0.0 

0.0 

2.8 

May  8 

0.0 

0.0 

0.0 

TABLE  V. 

Sh<  wing  the  Amount  of  Smu^  from  Treated  fTeed  Planted  in  New  Soil 
on  Various  Dates. 


Dates  of  Planting- 
1914 

Percentage  of  smutted  iilants 

July  80  to  Allgust  81,  19  plantings 

0.0 

Septemlier  4 

20.0 

.Septemiier  14  

21.0 

S(M>tember  17  

41.0 

September  19  

60.0 

September  2 8 

36.0 

tictober  5 

27.0 

October  11  

14.0 

fictober  25  

n.7 

October  81  

0.7 

November  5 

0.0 

spores  carried  by  the  wind  under  certain  conditions,  and  sec- 
ond, the  production  of  a smut-infected  crop  in  new  soil. 

For  example,  at  Pullman  during  the  first  week  of  Sep- 
tember, 1915,  17,000  smut  spores  fell  on  each  square  inch  of 
surface  at  a point  one-quarter  mile  distant  from  the  nearest 
wheat  field.  Smut  spores  can  be  found  in  abundance  upon 
the  surface  of  vegetation  at  varying  distances  from  any 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


13 


wheat  fields.  Twenty-five  apple  leaves  taken  from  an  orchard 
at  least  a quarter  mile  distant  from  the  nearest  wheat  field, 
when  collected  and  examined  on  September  9th  were  found 
to  have  over  three  million  smut  spores  lodged  upon  their  sur- 
faces. 

The  results  shown  in  Table  V.  are  presented  as  evidence 
of  infection  from  wind-blown  spores.  The  tract  used  in  this 
test  had  never  had  wheat  grown  upon  it,  nor  had  wheat  been 
grown  near  it  in  recent  years,  while  every  possible  care  was 
taken  to  keep  it  free  from  smut.  The  seed  was  hand-threshed 
from  selected  smut-free  heads,  and  was  probably  smut  free. 
It  was,  however,  treated  for  20  minutes  with  a solution  of  one 
pound  of  bluestone  and  one  pound  of  salt  to  5 gallons  of 
water,  as  an  added  safeguard  against  infection.  Light  rains 
began  September  6th  and  the  soil  was  well  moistened  by 
September  15th.  No  other  explanation  except  wind-blown 
spores  can  be  given  for  the  high  percentage  of  smut  shown 
by  the  various  plantings. 

METHODS  OF  CONTROL. 

It  does  not  seem  probable  that  wheat  smut  will  be  con- 
trolled by  any  single  practice,  but  rather  by  the  combined 
use  of  various  methods.  At  this  time  emphasis  should  be 
placed  upon  five  different  lines  of  attack  as  follows: 

(1)  Crop  rotation. 

(2)  The  use  of  clean  seed. 

(3)  Seed  treatment  with  fungicides. 

(4)  Cultural  practices. 

(5)  Breeding  and  selection  of  varieties. 

• 1.  Crop  Rotation. 

Failure  to  practice  crop  rotation  is  undoubtedly  one  of 
the  main  explanations  for  the  general  prevalence  of  smut  in 
the  wheat  fields  of  Eastern  Washington.  Single  cropping  is 
not  only  a poor  practice  from  the  standpoint  of  soil  exhaus- 
tion, but  offers  an  opportunity  for  the  gradual  increase  in 
severity  of  a disease  after  it  is  once  introduced.  In  the  in- 
terests of  smut  control  we  must  urge  more  attention  to  ro- 
tation of  crops.  Wheat  following  wheat  is  very  likely  to  be 
smutty  for  the  reason  previously  outlined.  Even  with  an  in- 
tervening summer  fallow,  the  smut  from  a previous  crop 
may  be  a souce  of  infection.  Many  experiences  show  that  a 
fall  stubble  crop  is  less  liable  to  smut  infection  than  a crop 
following  summer  fallow.  The  apparent  explanation  for  this 
condition  is  the  fact  that  the  summer  fallow  becomes  infected 
with  wind-blown  spores,  while  in  a stubble  crop,  the  wind- 


14 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


blown  spores  as  well  as  those  originating  from  the  previous 
crop  are  buried  in  plowing.  It  is  not  within  the  scope  of  this 
bulletin  to  discuss  the  various  rotations  that  may  be  em- 
ployed. These  must  be  suited  to  the  conditions  which  prevail 
in  the  various  sections.  Many  farmers  ,vho  are  practicing  a 
wheat,  oats,  su  nmer  fallow  rotation,  and  are  treating  their 
seed,  have  generally  reduced  the  smut  to  a considerable  ex- 
tent. It  is  worthy  of  note  in  this  connection  that  experience 
on  the  Experiment  Station  farm  where  the  rainfall  is  23 
inches  has  shown  that  summer  fallowing  is  not  an  essential 
practice.  It  seems  probable  that  a rotation  which  would  elim- 
inate summer  fallow  would  help  in  solving  our  smut  problem, 
and  it  is  recommended  for  regions  which  do  not  require  sum- 
mer fallowing  for  the  conservation  of  moisture. 

2.  The  Use  of  Clean  Seed. 

If  clean  seed  or  properly  treated  seed  had  been  used  by 
all  farmers  we  should  never  have  had  a smut  problem.  It  is 
very  apparent  that  too  little  care  has  been  used  hi  the  selec- 
tion of  wheat  for  seed  purposes.  ¥/e  can  not  advise  the  use 
of  visibly  sreutted  seed  under  anv  cireurnstances  where  it  is 
possible  to  obtain  clean  stock.  The  farmer  who  has  only 
smutted  seed  available  would  profit  by  selling  his  entire  crop 
and  purchasing  smut-free  or  at  least  clean  seed.  If  wheat 
showing  unbroken  smut  balls  must  be  used  for  seed  it  should 
be  thoroughly  cleaned  to  remove  as  many  of  these  as  nossible. 
The  danger  from  the  few  smut  balls  left  in  the  seed  wheal 
has  already  been  pointed  out.  The  difficulty  of  effecting  their 
complete  removal,  either  by  the  fanning  mill  or  bv  the  t^nk 
method  of  treatment,  gives  ample  reason  for  placing  empha 
sis  upon  the  selection  of  clean  seed. 

Farmers  who  are  not  willing  to  adopt  a general  rotation 
for  the  reduction  of  smut  would  do  well  to  set  aside  a seed 
plat  of  sufficient  size  to  furnish  their  required  amount  of  seed 
and  practice  a systematic  rotation  like  wheat,  oats,  sum^^er 
fallow  or  any  other  suitable  sequence.  With  some  att^^n^ion 
to  cleaning  the  separator,  it  should  be  possible  by  this  method 
to  always  have  a supply  of  clean  wheat.  The  wrii-ers  would 
advise  threshing  this  seed  wheat  at  low  speed,  to  lessen  the 
injury  to  the  grains,  since  it  is  known  that  separator  iniury 
is  an  important  factor  in  reducing  the  per  cent  of  viable 
seed  and  also  increases  the  injury  from  seed  treatment. 

The  effect  of  separator  injury  upon  the  germination  of 
wheat  was  discussed  in  some  detail  in  a previous  publicationh 


1 Woolman,  H.  M..  Stinking  Smut  in  Wheat.  Popular  Bui.  Wash.  Agrr.  Exp. 
Sta.,  73.  1914. 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


15 


and  will  not  be  repeated  here.  In  order  to  emphasize  the 
danger  of  seed  injury  in  theshing,  the  following  facts  based 
on  tins  bulletin  are  presented:  In  a number  of  tests,  hand- 
tlireshed  wheat  gave  a germination  percentage  of  92-100, 
whde  for  machine  threshed  grain  the  germination  percentage 
ranged  from  66-88.  After  a five-minute  treatment  in  blue- 
stone,  one  pound  to  2^  gallons  of  water,  the  germination  per- 
centage of  forty  Fold  was  as  follows:  hand-threshed,  100; 
threshed  at  low  speed,  50;  threshed  at  high  speed,  35.  While 
the  strength  of  the  copper  solution  was  greater  than  that 
commonly  employed  in  seed  treatment,  the  figures  show  that 
grain  threshed  at  high  speed  of  the  separator  is  injured  more 
by  seed  treatment  than  seed  threshed  at  low  speed. 

3.  Seed  Teatment. 

Unless  seed  is  known  to  be  smut-free  some  treatment 
must  be  employed  to  kill  the  spores  lodged  upon  the  surface. 
If  seed  which  does  not  contain  unbroken  smut  balls  is  used 
and  it  is  planted  in  an  uninfected  soil,  the  proper  care  in  seed 
treatment  should  give  either  a smut-free  crop  or  only 
traces  of  smut.  High  per  cents  of  smut  indicate  either  soil 
infection  or  imperfect  treatment.  Either  physical  or  chemi- 
cal agencies  are  in  use  for  treating  cereals  for  the  various 
species  of  smuts.  The  hot-water  treatment  is  quite  effective 
for  all  smuts  that  are  seed-borne,  but  the  method  is  quite 
laborious  and  is  only  recommended  when  one  of  the  chemi- 
cal “steeps”  is  not  effective.  The  hot-water  method  must  be 
used  for  the  loose  smuts  of  wheat  and  barley  in  which 
there  is  an  internal  seed  infection,  but  smuts  like  bunt 
of  wheat,  and  the  loose  smuts  of  oats  and  barley  in  which  the 
spores  are  superficial,  can  be  treated  to  better  advantage 
with  chemical  poisons.  The  principle  of  the  chemical  treat- 
ment is  to  use  a poison  which  will  kill  the  superficial  spores 
of  the  smut  and  not  materially  injure  the  germinating  power 
of  the  seed.  Of  the  many  different  chemicals  tried  up  to  this 
time  at  this  Station  and  elsewhere  only  a relatively  small 
number  have  proved  to  be  practical  and  at  the  same  time 
effective.  Many  ineffective  poisons  are  excluded  on  account 
of  their  cost.  The  two  which  have  come  into  general  use  are 
copper  sulfate,  or  bluestone  and  formaldehyde.  The  form- 
ulae for  these  two  solutions  are  as  follows: 

1.  Copper  sulphate  (bluestone)  one  pound,  sodium  chlo- 
ride (common  salt)  one  pound,  water  five  gallons. 

2.  Formalin  or  a 40%  solution  of  formaldehyde,  one 
pound  to  30  or  40  gallons  of  water. 


16 


BUNT  OR  STINGING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


These  solutions  should  not  be  prepared  by  guess,  but 
very  accurately  by  weight  and  measure. 

It  should  be  expressly  understood  that  we  do  not  recom- 
mend the  use  of  seed  which  contains  unbroken  smut  balls.  If 
however,  necessity  forces  the  use  of  seed  of  this  type,  the 
open  tank  method  of  seed  treatment  should  be  employed,  the 
grain  thoroughly  stirred  in  the  fungicide  and  all  smut  balls 
skimmed  off.  A convenient  procedure  is  as  follows: 

Jcrl„  1.  Construct  a water-tight  tank  or  trough  (8x2  feet  and 
14  inches  deep  is  a good  size)  . 

2.  Fill  the  tank  two-thirds  full  of  the  fungicide. 

3.  Pour  seed  wheat  slowly  into  the  fungicide  until  the 
trough  is  nearly  half  full. 

4.  Stir  thoroughly  in  order  to  float  the  unbroken  smut 
balls  to  the  surface. 

-•  5.  Skim  off  the  smut  grains  and  destroy  them. 

6.  Allow  the  grain  to  remain  in  the  fungicide  for  at 
least  ten  minutes,  then  remove  to  sacks  or  pile  in  heaps  and 
cover  with  moist  sacks  until  the  next  day,  when  it  should  be 
used  for  seeding. 

If  formalin  is  used  a new  solution  should  be  prepared 
every  day  as  it  loses  its  strength  very  rapidly.  A stock  solu- 
tion of  bluestone  may  be  kept  until  it  is  used  up  as  it  does 
not  lose  strength. 

If  the  formalin  method  is  used  and  the  seed  is  to  be 
planted,  as  soon  as  taken  from  the  steep  the  period  of  im- 
' mersion  in  the  solution  should  be  extended  to  thirty  minutes 
’ to  give  a protective  effect  equal  to  that  of  the  copper  sulfate. 

On  the  supposition  that  the  seed  employed  is  practically 
free  from  smut  balls  the  following  method  can  be  employed, 
using  either  one  of  the  solutions: 

1.  Put  a sufficient  amount  of  the  solution  (35  to  40 
gallons)  into  a barrel  to  completely  immerse  a sack  of  seed 

, or  use  a larger  quantity  in  a tank. 

2.  Put  seed  to  be  treated  into  sacks  (one  and  one-half 
bushels)  and  dip  each  sack  into  the  solution,  allowing  it  to 
remain  ten  minutes. 

3.  Remove  the  sack  and  drain,  allowing  the  excess  of 
the  steep  to  run  back  into  the  barrel  or  tank.  Replenish  the 
solution  as  often  as  necessary  from  a stock  solution,  so  as  to 
always  have  the  sack  completely  immersed. 

4.  Allow  the  treated  seed  to  remain  over  night  in  the 

wet  sacks  and  use  the  next  day.  ^ ^ ■ 

In  seed  treatment  “safety  first”  is  good  policy,  there- 
fore the  open  tank  method  is  strongly  recommended. 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


17 


Two  effects  of  the  “steeps”  upon  the  seed  should  be 
borne  in  mind:  first,  the  absorbtion  of  water  causes  more  or 
less  swelling  of  the  grains;  second,  the  toxic  or  poisonous 
action  of  the  fungicide  causes  a reduction  in  the  per  cent  of 
germination.  In  seeding  due  allowance  should  be  made  for 
the  increase  in  size  of  the  grains  by  setting  the  drill  to  sow 
more  than  the  ordinary  quantity  of  seed.  Since  the  per  cent  of 
germination  of  untreated  seed  varies  within  wide  limits,  and 
the  fungicides  still  further  decrease  the  per  cent  viable,  it  is 
always  advisable  to  make  germination  tests  of  the  treated 
seed,  and  regulate  the  amount  used  per  acre  in  accordance 
with  this  reduction. 

The  injurious  action  of  the  bluestone  can  be  greatly  re- 
duced by  soaking  the  seed  in  lime-water  made  by  slacking  one 
pound  of  quick  lime  and  diluting  to  ten  gallons.  For  careful 
work  the  sacks  may  be  dipped  in  this  solution  for  five  to  ten 
minutes  immediately  following  their  removal  from  the  blue- 
stone. 

In  case  there  is  not  a soil  infection  bluestone  and  formal- 
dehyde seem  to  have  about  an  equal  protective  action.  In 
case  of  a soil  infection,  a condition  which  is  found  to  be  fairly 
common  in  Washington,  the  bluestone  treatment  seems  to 
give  slightly  better  results.  This  is  explained  by  the  fact 
that  formaldehyde  being  a volatile  poison,  soon  evaporates, 
while  some  copper  is  left  behind  on  the  seed  coats,  and  pass- 
ing into  solution  in  the  soil  may  inhibit  or  retard  the  germin- 
ation of  spores  in  the  soil  that  are  near  to  the  young  seed- 
ling. (See  Table  VI.). 

TABLE  VI. 

Showing  the  Comparative  Efficiency  of  the  Bluestone  and  Formalde- 
hyde Treatment  in  Preventing  a Reinfection. 


Percentag^e  of  infected  plants 

Bluestone  treat- 

Formaldehyde 

ment 

treatment 

rrfiatfid  sp.ftjl  In  smutty  soil 

16.3 

50.1 

Treated  resmutted  seed  in  clean 

soil  

4.1 

22.9 

4.  Cultural  Practices. 


Certain  cultural  practices  are  beneficial  in  reducing  the 
amount  of  smut  in  all  cases,  while  the  value  of  others  depends 
to  some  extent  upon  the  source  of  the  smut  spores.  The 
factors  which  always  influence  the  amount  of  smut  are  (1)  the 
temperature  of  the  soil  during  the  germinating  period,  (2)  the 


18 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


amount  of  soil  moisture,  and  (3)  the  depth  of  seeding.  Where 
seed-borne  spores  are  the  only  sources  of  infection,  attention 
to  the  three  factors  mentioned,  will  give  the  only  cultural 
practices  for  reducing  the  amount  of  smut. 

The  temperature  of  the  soil  at  the  time  of  germination 
of  the  wheat  is  very  important.  Table  VII.  shows  that  the 
amount  ol  infection  from  seed-borne  spores  when  the  mean 
soil  temperature  is  65  ¥.  or  over  is  much  less  than  when  it 
ranges  between  60''  and  40°  h\  It  is  also  shown  that  still 
lower  temperatures  give  a reduction  in  the  amount  of  smut. 
A similar  condition  prevails  when  the  smut  is  already  in  the 
soil  (see  Table  Vll.).  The  great  reduction  in  smut  in  the  later 
plantings  in  the  infected  soil  was  due  in  part  to  the  death 
of  the  spores  which  had  been  in  the  soil  for  three  months. 

Our  experiments  have  given  some  evidence  that  planting 
when  there  is  just  sufiicient  moisture  to  induce  germination 
is  a good  practice,  and  even. that  dry  planting  and  waiting  for 
a ram  is  better  than  planting  in  a very  wet  soil.  The  rela- 
tion of  soil  moisture  to  infection  is  still  being  investigated. 

Our  results  during  the  past  summer  show  that  deep 
planting  increases  the  amount  of  smut.  This  is  true  whether 
clean  seed  is  used  in  an  infected  soil  or  smutted  seed  in  a 
smut-free  soil.  (See  Table  VIII.). 

When  the  source  of  smut  spores  is  from  a previous  crop 
certain  known  facts  should  be  taken  into  consideration:  (1) 
The  infection  power  from  separated  spores  is  limited  to  2 to 
3 months  in  n oist  soil;  (2)  spores  in  the  unbroken  balls  may 
retain  their  viability  for  one  year  or  more  under  natural  field 
conditions:  (3)  separated  spores  do  not  live  through  the  win- 
ter under  normal  field  conditions.  From  these  facts  it  seems 
certain  that  any  operation  on  a smutty  stubble  field  in  the  fall 
that  destroys  or  crushes  the  balls  and  mixes  the  smut  with 
the  soil  will  be  beneficial  in  reducing  the  amount  of  smut. 
Such  practices  as  burning,  rolling,  dragging,  disking,  and 
heavy  pasturing  are  suggested.  It  is  recognized  that  burn- 
ing is  objectionable  as  a general  practice,  and  should  only  be 
resorted  to  in  extreme  cases.  Early  spring  plowing  of  land 
with  tillage  before  the  spring  rains  cease  should  give  good 
results,  while  late  plowing  followed  by  tillage  when  the  soil 
is  relatively  dry  would  offer  an  opportunity  for  much  infec- 
tion. In  the  former  case  a high  percentage  of  the  spores 
would  succumb  before  seeding  time,  while  in  the  latter  case 
the  liberated  spores  would  remain  viable  until  the  fall  rains, 
and  would  be  ready  to  infect  the  crop.  It  seems  probable 
that  fall  plowing  proceeding  summer  fallow  will  also  give 
good  results,  but  it  has  not  been  tried  to  any  extent.  The 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


19 


TABLE  VII. 

Showing  Effect  of  Time  of  Planting  on  the  Amount  of  Smut. 

A.  Clean  (Hybrid  143)  treated  seed  in  soil  heavily  smutted  on  7-30-14 

B.  Untreated  and  smutted  seed  (Hybrid  143)  in  clean  soil. 

C.  Untreated  and  smutted  seed  (average  of  6 varieties)  in  clean  soil. 


Date  of  planting 
1914 

Mean  soil  temper- 
ature during 
germination.  ° F. 

A 

Percentage  of 
smutted  plants 

B 

Percentage  of 
smutted  plants 

August  24  

69 

28.0 

3.1 

August  31  

67 

33.3 

3.9 

September  2 

66 

25.5 

5.5 

September  17  .... 

55 

83.0 

91.3 

October  3 

52 

62.1 

99.1 

October  3 

50 

68,4 

96.6 

October  18 

47 

44.9 

97.5 

October  25  

1 46 

15.4 

93.6 

November  2 

42 

92.5 

November  9 

39 

5.4 

88.6 

November  23*  .... 

36 

2.0 

20.6 

1915 

C 

April  23  

54 

25.6 

May  3 

59 

3 b,-.: 

May  8 

56 

14.7 

May  15  

53 

34.2 

May  22  

60 

10.6 

*Did  not  come  until  spi'ing'. 


TABLE  VIII. 


Showing  the  Effect  of  Depth  of  Planting  on  the  Percentage  of  Smut. 

Hybrid  143. 


Treated  seed  in 

smutted  soil. 

Depth  of  1 

No.  of  plants 

No.  of  plants 

No.  of  plants 

planting  | 

smut-free 

5ompletely  smutted 

partly  smutted 

0.5  in. 

117 

16 

16 

1.0  in. 

83 

20 

58 

1.5  in. 

39 

15 

40 

2.0  in. 

25 

32 

39 

2.5  in. 

11 

47 

11 

3.0  in. 

9 

45 

5 

Smutted  seed  in  clean  soil. 

0.5  In. 

1 

29 

1 

0 

1.0  in. 

16 

4 

25 

1.5  in. 

35 

28 

14 

2.0  In. 

17 

31 

30 

2.5  in. 

16 

88 

25 

3.0  in. 

18 

140 

38 

20 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


results  given  in  Table  IV.  show  that  spores  liberated  in  the 
soil  during  the  dry  period  remain  viable  until  the  fall  rains. 
Since  it  is  the  smut  heads  left  near  or  on  the  surface  of  the 
ground  that  will  furnish  the  spores  for  the  infection  of  a fol- 
lowing crop,  an  attempt  should  be  made  to  bury  these  as  com- 
pletely as  possible  in  plowing.  For  this  reason  the  use  of  a 
jointer  is  recommended. 

It  has  previously  been  shown  that  there  is  a general  dis- 
semination of  smut  spores  during  the  threshing  season.  At 
present  there  is  no  way  to  prevent  this  and  infection  from 
wind-borne  spores  must  be  prevented  by  cultural  practices. 
The  summer  fallow  fields  seem  to  be  well  seeded  with  wind- 
borne  spores  in  the  majority  of  cases.  The  practices  sug- 
gested are:  (1)  seeding  before  the  smut  shower  or  if  this  is 
not  possible  at  least  before  the  fall  rains;  (2)  replowing  of 
the  summer  fallow  after  the  first  fall  rains,  and  (3)  late 
planting. 

Early  seeding  of  summer  fallow  is  designed  to  elimin- 
ate or  reduce  not  only  the  infection  from  the  wind-borne 
spores,  but  is  beneficial  in  case  of  seed  or  previous  soil  in- 
fection, on  account  of  the  high  temperatures  at  that  time 
of  the  year.  (See  Table  VII.).  By  proper  treatment  of  a 
summer  fallow  sufficient  moisture  can  be  retained  at  plant- 
ing depth  to  insure  prompt  germination  and  growth.  Even 
if  the  soil  should  be  too  dry  for  germination,  planting  to 
await  the  rain  would  be  safer  than  planting  soon  after  the 
fall  rains  begin.  From  the  agronomic  and  farm  management 
standpoints  early  planting  has  both  advantages  and  disad- 
vantages. 

The  advantages  aside  from  the  reduction  of  smut  may  be 
summarized  as  follows: 

(1)  The  stand  is  always  well  developed  and  reduces  the 
soil  washing  in  the  early  spring. 

(2)  A greater  part  of  the  growth  is  made  during  the 
early  spring,  using  moisture  which  would  otherwise  be  lost 
by  evaporation,  and  as  a result  the  crop  matures  ahead  of 
the  season  when  burning  is  likely. 

(3)  The  heavy  fall  growth  furnishes  a considerable 
amount  of  pasture. 

Some  of  the  disadvantages  may  be  mentioned: 

(1)  The  early  planting  comes  at  a busy  season. 

(2)  The  seed  would  have  to  be  carried  over  from  the 
previous  harvest  in  most  cases. 

(3)  There  is  greater  danger  of  winter-killing  and  there 
is  a chance  for  too  heavy  a growth  of  straw.  The  winter- 
killing  can,  however,  be  prevented  by  sufficient  pasturing. 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


21 


Early  seeding  has  been  practiced  by  various  farmers, 
and  they  report  a marked  reduction  in  smut  and  are  well  sat- 
isfied with  the  results.  Duling  and  Bishop  of  Garfield  have 
followed  this  method  for  three  years  and  report  that  the 
pasture  alone  netted  them  six  to  eight  dollars  per  acre  during 
the  last  season. 

The  replowing  of  summer  fallow  after  the  first  fall  rains 
is  generally  effective  in  reducing  the  amount  of  smut.  It  has 
been  claimed  by  some  that  this  practice  reduces  the  yield, 
but  this  has  not  been  true  in  any  cases  known  to  us.  On  the 
other  hand  there  has  been  an  apparent  increase  in  yield.  The 
summer  fallow  land  of  James  Carnegie,  near  Pullman,  was 
replowed  during  the  fall  of  1914,  and  a yield  of  50  bushels  of 
nearly  smut-free  wheat  per  acre  was  harvested  during  the 
past  season. 

Very  late  planting,  that  is,  four  or  five  weeks  after  the 
first  good  fall  rains,  is  also  an  effective  practice.  This  is 
shown  by  the  results  presented  in  Table  V.  and  is  substan- 
tiated by  many  farm  observations.  Fall  tillage  of  summer 
fallow  other  than  plowing  seems  to  be  beneficial,  but  since 
this  is  generally  associated  with  later  planting,  it  is  rather 
difficult  to  say  just  how  much  of  the  benefit  comes  from  the 
tillage  and  how  much  from  the  late  planting. 

5.  Breeding  and  Selection  of  Varieties. 

No  smut-immune  varieties  of  wheat  are  known  but  the 
standard  varieties  show  varying  degrees  of  resistance.  This 
fact  has  suggested  two  lines  of  work:  (1)  the  testing  of  es- 
tablished varieties  to  determine  their  comparative  resistance 
and  the  selection  of  resistant  strains  if  such  can  be  found, 
and  (2)  the  production  of  resistant  varieties  by  crossing, 
which  shall  also  possess  the  other  desirable  qualities.  The  sec- 
ond phase  of  this  work  offers  much  of  promise,  but  it  has  not 
progressed  to  a point  where  definite  statements  can  be  made. 
The  evidence  concerning  comparative  resistance  of  varieties 
is  somewhat  conflicting  and  it  will  require  more  detailed 
tests  for  a number  of  years  to  give  conclusive  evidence.  In  the 
first  place  it  should  be  noted  that  spring  wheats  generally 
suffer  less  from  smut  than  winter  varieties.  This  is  not  due 
to  any  superior  resistance,  but  rather  to  the  fact  that  they 
escape  infection.  If  only  spring  wheats  were  grown  our  smut 
problem  would  largely  disappear,  but  a return  to  this  prac- 
tice is  not  suggested,  since  the  winter  wheats  are  much  more 
desirable. 

A brief  discussion  will  be  presented  of  some  results  of 
our  tests  of  a few  winter  varieties.  The  summary  presented, 


22  BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OP  WHEAT. 

(see  Table  IX.),  is  the  result  of  six  plantings  of  each  variety 
in  three  different  locations.  It  will  be  noted  that  the  relative 
resistance  based  on  a count  of  plants  showing  infection 
is  different  from  that  shown  by  the  count  of  heads.  When 
infected  and  smut-free  plants  are  counted,  Red  Russian 
shows  the  least  smut,  with  Forty  Fold  second  and  Turkey 
Red  third.  The  count  of  heads  reverses  the  order,  Turkey 
Red  being  best,  while  Forty  Fold  is  second  and  Red  Russian 
third.  This  is  due  to  the  fact  that  Turkey  Red  and  Forty 
Fold  produce  many  smut-free  heads  on  infected  plants.  This 
indicates  a capacity  on  the  part  of  these  varieties  to  outgrow 
an  infection,  and  suggests  one  of  the  possible  elements  of  re- 
sistance. It  seems  probable  that  the  conditions  which  pre- 
vail during  the  growing  season  may  have  considerable  in- 
fluence on  the  per  cent  of  smut  in  any  given  variety. 

Essentially  similar  results  have  been  obtained  in  the  in- 
vestigations conducted  by  the  Division  of  Farm  Crops  as 
shown  in  Table  X.  . ^ ^ 

The  evidence  as  it  stands  at  the  present  time  indicates 
that  wheats  of  the  Club  type  ( T,  compactum^  are  in  general 
more  susceptible  than  the  common  varieties  (T.  vulgare) 
with  the  long  heads.  The  Winter  Fife  is  apparently  an  ex- 
ception to  this,  standing  very  close  to  the  Club  Hybrids  in 
susceptibility,  and  other  exceptions  will  probably  be  found 
as  the  investigations  are  continued.  The  greater  suscepti- 
bility of  the  Club  varieties  to  smut  should  not  of  necessity 
discourage  their  planting.  It  should  be  noted  that  some  of 
the  College  Club  Hybrids  have  excelled  all  others^  in  both 
yield  and  quality.^  This  being  true  it  may  be  advisable  to 
grow  them  rather  than  some  of  the  more  resistant  varieties 
which  give  a poorer  yield.  The  search  for  resistant  yarieties 
suited  to  Eastern  Washington  is  being  continued. 

SUMMARY  OF  RECOMMENDATIONS. 

The  control  of  smut  will  only  be  accomplished  by  the 
combined  use  of  various  practices.  These  are  not  presented 
in  the  order  of  their  importance  and  they  must  of  necessity 
be  varied  in  different  sections  of  the  state. 

1.  More  attention  should  be  given  to  crop  rotation, 
since  single  cropping  to  wheat  is  favorable  to  the  continua- 
tion of  smut. 

2.  The  use  of  clean  or  smut-free  seed  is  advised.  It  is 
a bad  practice  to  use  visibly  smutted  grain  for  seed,  and  es- 


1 Schafer,  B.  G.,  and  Gaines,  B.  P.  Washington  Wheats.  Bui.  Wash.  Agr. 
Exp.  Sta.,  121:1-16.  1915. 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  OF  WHEAT. 


23 


TABLE  IX. 

Showing  the  Comparative  Resistance  of  a Number  of  Winter  Wheats 
to  Smut  Infection. 

Heavily  smutted  seed  planted  October  16,  1914;  the  figures  represent 
the  average  from  6 plats  of  each  variety  in  three  different  loca- 
tions. 


Variety 

Percentage 
of  clean 
plants 

Percentage 
of  smutted 
plants 

Percentage 
of  partially 
smutted 
plants 

Percentage 
of  smutted 
heads 

Red  Russian  

36.0 

35.2 

28.8 

45.8 

Forty  Fold  

27.0 

36.8 

36.2 

50.3 

Turkey  Red  

22.0 

11.2 

66.8 

40.2 

Winter  Fife  

8.1 

76.7 

15.2 

79.1 

Hybrid  60  

5.1 

85.0 

10.0 

89.1 

Hybrid  108  

9.0 

78.4 

12.6 

85.0 

Hybrid  123  

6.8 

78.8 

14.4 

86.7 

Hybrid  143  

5.0 

91.3 

3.7 

93.8 

TABLE  X. 

Showing  the  Comparative  Resistance  of  a Number  of  Winter  Wheats 
to  Smut  Infection.i 

Heavily  smutted  seed  planted  November  7.  The  figures  represent  re- 
sults from  a six-rod  row  of  each  variety. 


Variety 

Percentage 
of  clean 
plants 

Percentage 
of  complete- 
ly smutted 
plants 

Percentage 
of  partially 
smutted 
plants 

Percentage 
of  damage 

Turkey  Red*  

49.36 

0.0 

50.64  1 

4.56 

Red  Russian*  

9.96  I 

12.45 

77.59 

67.85 

Forty  Fold*  

7.36 

16.56 

76.07 

72.47 

Triplet’s  Sister*  

13.95 

32.56 

53.49 

73.69 

Turkey  X Bluestem*  . . . 

8.98 

44.08 

46.94 

80.22 

Hybrid  128**  

8.75 

68.17 

23.08 

86.63 

Triplet*  

1.91 

41.19 

56.90 

88.13 

Hybrid  108**  

9.37 

70.31 

20.31 

88.08 

Jones  Winter  Fife*  .... 

5.41 

74.20 

20.39 

89.35 

Hybrid  143**  

3.03 

76.03 

20.94 

92.57 

Turkey  X Winter  Fife*. 

3.82 

78.82 

17.35 

93.15 

Hybrid  123**  

1.67 

50.63 

47.70 

93.89 

Little  Club**  

2.26 

87.22 

10.52 

96.24 

••Average  percentage  of  damage  to  Compactum  types,  91.5. 
•Average  percentage  of  damage  to  Vulgare  types,  80.7. 


iThis  table  was  compiled  by  Mr.  B.  F.  Gaines  of  the  Division  of  Farm 
Crops  and  is  based  on  tests  made  in  the  Cereal  Nursery  of  the  Bxperi- 
ment  Station. 


24 


BUNT  OR  STINKING  SMUT  IN  WHEAT. 


pecially  so  if  the  smut  is  in  the  form  of  unbroken  balls.  It  is 
impossible  to  completely  remove  all  unbroken  smut  balls 
either  by  the  use  of  the  fanning  mill  or  by  the  tank  method 
of  seed  treatment.  The  occurrence  of  partially  smutted 
grains  is  an  added  source  of  danger  that  emphasizes  the  need 
of  planting  seed  that  is  known  to  be  smut-free. 

3.  Unless  the  seed  is  known  to  be  smut-free,  it  should 
be  treated  with  one  or  the  other  of  the  standard  fungi- 
cides.^ The  bluestone  treatment  has  a slight  preference  for 
Washington  conditions  since  it  has  some  protective  action  in 
preventing  infections  from  smut  spores  that  are  already  in 
the  soil. 

4.  The  cultural  practices  which  are  known  to  prevent 
smut  or  reduce  the  per  cent  of  infection  should  be  followed 
as  closely  as  possible.  The  most  important  facts  to  keep  in 
mind  are  as  follows: 

(a)  Early  seeding  either  before  the  smut  shower  or  at 
least  before  the  fall  rains  begin  will  be  likely  to  give  a low 
per  cent  of  infection  or  a smut-free  crop. 

(b)  Seeding  of  summer  fallow  land  during  the  first 
three  or  four  weeks  following  the  first  fall  rains  will  be  likely 
to  give  a large  amount  of  smut. 

(c)  Replowing  of  summer  fallow  reduces  the  amount  of 
smut,  if  this  operation  and  seeding  take  place  after  the  first 
fall  rains. 

(d)  If  clean  or  properly  treated  seed  is  used,  a fall  stub- 
ble crop  following  a previously  infected  crop  will  show  little 
smut  if  the  plowing  is  done  after  the  period  of  wind  dissem- 
ination, that  is,  after  the  advent  of  the  fall  rains. 

(e)  Late  fall  planting  will  tend  to  decrease  the  amount 
of  smut. 

(f)  Deep  planting  gives  a larger  amount  of  smut  than 
shallow  planting. 

(g)  Separated  smut  spores,  that  is,  spores  from  crushed 
smut  balls  lose  their  infective  power  after  2 to  3 months  in 
moist  soil  and  never  live  through  the  winter  under  normal 
conditions.  For  this  reason  field  operations  which  tend  to 
crush  the  smut  balls  scattered  during  the  harvest  period  are 
of  importance. 

5.  The  variation  in  susceptibility  of  varieties  may  ulti- 
mately make  possible  the  selection  of  those  which  are  highly 
resistant. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 
AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 
PULLMAN.  WASHINGTON. 


DIRECTOR’S  OFFICE 


Twenty-Fifth  Annual  Report 

For  the  Year  Ending  June  30,  1915 


BULLETIN  NO.  127 
December,  1915 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  Director 


Board  of  Control. 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  A.  Bryan  (President  of  College)  Secretary  ex-officio Pullman 

R.  C.  McCroskey  Garfield 

D.  S.  Troy  Chimacum 

J.  C.  Cunningham  Spokane 


Experiment  Station  Staff 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D.  . 
Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A... 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M . . . 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D. 
O.  M.  Morris,  M.  S.  . . . 
Geo.  Severance,  B.  S.  . 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S.  . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S.  . . . 
W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S.  . . 

Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D.  . . . 
C.  A.  Magoon,  A. -B.  . . . 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 
M A.  McCall,  M.  S.  . . . 
J.  S.  Caldwell,  Ph.  D.  . 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S.  . . 
Henry  F Holtz,  M.  S.  . . 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S.  . . , 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S.  . . 
M.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S. 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

, . . . By-products  Specialist 
. . . . Assistant  Entomologist 

Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. . Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
. . . Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

. . Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL. 


Pullman,  Washington,  December  10,  1915. 

Honorable  Ernest  Lister,  Governor, 

Olympia,  Washington. 

Sir; 

I have  the  honor  to  submit  herewith  the  Twenty-Fifth 
Annual  Report  of  the  State  Agricultural  Experiment  Station 
covering  the  work  of  this  Station  for  the  year  ending  June 
30,  1915.  Very  respectfully, 

IRA  D.  CARDIFF, 

Director 


DR.  E.  A.  BRYAN 


REGENT  R.  C.  McCROSKEY 


Twenty-fifth  Annual  Report,  Washington 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station 


AN  APPRECIATION. 

The  publication  of  this  report  marks  the  end  of  a quarter 
of  a century  of  work  by  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station.  In  view  of  this  fact  it  is  fitting  to  call  atten- 
tion to  the  work  of  two  men  who  have  had  largely  to  do  with 
moulding  the  character  and  work  of  the  Station  during 
its  formative  period. 

Honorable  R.  C.  McCroskey  has  been  identified  with  the 
College  in  one  way  and  another  almost  continuously  since 
the  founding  of  the  institution.  He  was  a member  of  the 
legislature  which  passed  the  laws  providing  for  the  founda- 
tion of  the  institution,  and  had  an  active  part  in  the  formu- 
lation of  the  bills  in  connection  with  this  legislation.  He  was 
then  offered  a position  upon  the  board  of  regents  of  the  col- 
ege  by  Governor  McGraw  but  was  obliged  to  decline  on  ac- 
count of  having  had  an  active  part  in  the  passage  of  the  laws 
providing  for  the  establishment  of  the  school.  However,  in 
1^97  he  was  appointed  to  the  board  by  Governor  Rogers  and 
since  then  has  worked  untiringly  lor  the  upbuilding  of  the 
institution,  having  seiu  ed  for  several  years  as  president  of 
the  board. 

It  is  especially  fitting  at  the  present  time  to  call  atten- 
tion to  the  work  of  President  E.  A.  Bryan,  Director  of  the 
Station  for  fifteen  years  (1892-1907),  inasmuch  as  he  is  sever- 
ing his  connection  with  the  College  during  the  present  month, 
after  twenty-three  years  of  service  as  President  of  the  State 
College  of  Washington.  Dr.  Bryan’s  period  of  public  work 
therefore  is  practically  coincident  with  the  existence  of  the 
institution  itself.  Nor  is  it  mere  coincidence,  for  the  insti- 
tution as  it  stands  today  is  largely  the  result  of  his  untiring 
labors  and  personal  devotion.  His  was  the  work  of  an  educa- 
tional pioneer  and  the  building  of  a great  educational  insti- 
tution of  this  type  called  for  a will  power  and  courage  of  the 
highest  order.  Like  many  other  educational  institutions  ex- 
periencing the  growing  pains  of  a young  and  rapidly  devel- 
oping state,  the  College  has  passed  periods  of  great  financial 


8-  TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 

stress  and  political  difficulty.  It  has  been  subject  to  the  at- 
tacks of  politicians  or  promoters  who  vainly  endeavored, 
during  the  early  period  of  its  existence,  to  either  exploit  it 
or  destroy  it,  and  the  friends  of  the  instution  and  of  higher 
education,  not  only  in  Washington  but  in  the  country  as  a 
whole,  owe  a debt  of  gratitude  to  the  man  who,  as  chief  ex- 
ecutive, successfully  withstood  these  attacks  and  brought  the 
school  to  its  present  position  in  the  educational  world  with  a 
career  untarnished  by  political  corruption. 

In  his  great  work  as  a pioneer  educational  builder  Presi- 
dent Bryan  has  always  been  ably  supported  by  the  judgment 
and  foresight  of  Regent  McCroskey,  who  this  year  enters  up- 
on another  term  as  regent.  It  is  rare  indeed  that  the  govern- 
ing board  of  a public  institution  of  learning  can  boast  of  a 
record  of  a member  equal  to  that  of  Senator  McCroskey.  Be- 
ing a leader  in  a political  party  which  is  usually  in  the  minor- 
ity, it  is  evident  that  his  position  on  the  board  is  the  result 
of  genuine  worth.  To  these  two  men  the  Northwest  is  in- 
debted for  fundamental  and  far-teaching  work  in  the  pro- 
motion of  higher  education. 

CHANGES  IN  STAFF. 

Changes  in  the  Station  staff  for  the  fiscal  year  1914-1915 
include  the  following:  William  Hislop  was  appointed  Animal 
Husbandman  and  F.  D.  Heald  Plant  Pathologist  in  place  of 
R.  C.  Ashby  and  J.  G.  Hall,  respectively,  who  resigned  near 
the  end  of  the  previous  fiscal  year.  C.  A.  Magoon  was  pro- 
moted from  the  position  of  Assistant  Bacteriologist  to  that  of 
Bacteriologist,  and  J.  W.  Kalkus  from  the  position  of  Assist- 
ant Veterinarian  to  that  of  Veterinarian.  A.  L.  Sherman  was 
appointed  Assistant  Chemist  vice  K.  C.  McWilliams  resigned, 
and  F.  W.  Allen,  Assistant  Horticulturist  vice  W.  J.  Young 
resigned.  M.  A.  McCall,  Vice  Director  of  the  Department  of 
Dry  Land  Demonstration  and  Experiment,  was  made  Dry 
Land  Specialist  of  the  Station  as  a result  of  this  department 
being  made  a part  of  the  Station. 

CHANGES  IN  ORGANIZATION. 

On  April  first,  1915,  the  Department  of  Dry  Land  Demon- 
stration and  Experiment,  with  headquarters  at  Lind,  was 
made  the  Dry  Land  Division  of  the  Experiment  Station. 

INVESTIGATIONAL  WORK. 

The  following  is  a brief  summary  of  the  work  of  investi- 
gation by  divisions  and  projects: 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  9 


DIVISION  OF  AGRICULTURE. 

Dairy  Husbandry. 

Two  feeding  tests,  one  on  beet  pulp  vs.  corn  silage  and 
one  on  the  use  of  milk  substitutes  for  calf  feeding  were  con- 
ducted. The  former  was  carried  on  with  the  assistance  of  Mr. 
R.  E.  Hundertmark,  and  the  latter  with  the  assistance  of  Mr. 
A.  L.  Beam  and  Mr.  R.  E.  Clark,  who  carried  it  on  as  an  agri- 
cultural thesis  problem. 

Beet  Pulp  vs.  Corn  Silage. 

In  order  to  test  the  value  of  dried  beet  pulp  soaked,  as 
compared  with  corn  silage  the  station  selected  eight  grade 
cows  in  different  stages  of  lactation.  Dried  beet  pulp  was 
fed  to  one-half  and  corn  silage  to  the  other  half  for  a period 
of  one  month. 

The  results  of  the  test  showed  that  beet  pulp,  moistened 
with  five  parts  by  weight  of  water,  was  a very  palatable  feed 
and  was  consumed  with  considerable  relish.  The  milk  flow 
increased  from  one  to  two  pounds  per  day  as  soon  as  the  stock 
was  well  on  the  beet  pulp  ration  and  this  increase  was  main- 
tained for  the  remainder  of  the  month.  It  was  found  that  al- 
though it  was  difficult  to  accustom  the  cows  to  eating  the 
new  feed  at  first,  later  they  would  eat  from  six  to  eight 
pounds  more  of  the  soaked  pulp  than  they  would  of  the  corn 
silage.  The  general  condition  of  the  cows  fed  the  beet  pulp 
was  comparable  with  that  of  those  fed  corn  silage  and  there 
was  no  appreciable  difference  in  their  weights  from  the  be- 
ginning to  the  close  of  the  month.  The  succulence  in  a ration 
when  fed  36  pounds  of  corn  silage  at  $6.00  per  ton  would 
cost  10.8  cents  and  when  fed  48  pounds  of  wet  beet  pulp  at 
$27.00  per  ton  for  the  dried  beet  pulp  would  cost  the  same. 
Since  their  feeding  value  is  also  about  the  same,  it  would  seem 
that  the  extended  use  of  beet  pulp  as  a substitute  for  silage 
would  depend  largely  on  the  relative  cost  of  producing  and 
preserving  silage  and  cost  of  dried  beet  pulp. 

Substitutes  for  Skim  Milk  in  Feeding  Calves. 

In  this  state  where  a great  deal  of  milk  is  being  sold  as 
whole  milk  to  condensaries  and  to  city  trade,  there  is  a con- 
stant demand  for  some  milk  substitute  for  feeding  calves. 
Hence  a 90-day  feeding  test  to  compare  skim  milk  with 
Blatchford’s  Calf  Meal  and  a home  made  mixture  was  carried 
out,  using  eighteen  calves  in  three  groups.  A,  B and  C. 

The  calves  were  fed  all  the  grain  they  would  clean  up 
twice  daily.  This  consisted  of  ground  oats,  wheat  and  bar- 


10 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


ley  with  bran.  Clover  or  alfalfa  hay  was  kept  before  the 
calves  at  all  times  except  while  they  were  in  the  pasture. 
This  hay  was  weighed  and  averaged  equally  among  the  calves 
according  to  age.  The  skim  milk  and  the  gruel  from  the  calf 
meal  was  weighed  for  each  calf  at  each  feed.  The  grain  mix- 
ture was  fed  to  lot  “C”  in  addition  to  any  other  grain  or  skim 
milk  that  they  received  and  the  amount  given  each  calf  was 
measured.  After  each  feeding  the  utensils  were  all  washed 
and  scalded.  The  barn  was  fitted  with  stanchions  and  the 
calves  were  kept  in  them  for  a few  minutes  after  each  feed- 
ing. Hay  was  fed  outside  at  all  times  except  during  bad 
weather.  The  barn  was  kept  clean  and  was  well  bedded  with 
straw.  Clean  water  and  salt  were  before  the  calves  at  all 
times.  Tentative  conclusions  follow: 

Skim  milk  gave  the  best  results  as  a substitute  for 
whole  milk,  yet  other  foods,  Blatchford’s  calf  meal  and  the 
grain  mixtures,  together  with  a limited  use  of  skim  milk, 
gave  fair  results. 

The  skim  milk  lot  made  the  largest  gains  per  day  with 
the  lowest  cost  per  pound.  Grain  mixtures  fed  dry  rather 
than  mixed  with  milk  gave  the  best  results.  Blatchford’s 
Calf  Meal  and  grain  mixture  should  be  fed  with  the  same  re- 
gard for  cleanliness  and  sanitation  as  in  feeding  milk. 

The  Economy  of  Production  from  Large  vs.  Small  Cows. 

There  is  much  discussion  in  the  dairy  press  of  today  on 
the  relative  merits  of  small  cows  vs.  large  cows.  In  order  to 
determine  whether  large  cows  are  more  economical  and  more 
profitable  producers  than  small  cows,  or  vice  versa,  an  experi- 
ment was  started  during  the  year.  The  cows  were  divided 
without  regard  to  breed  into  groups  of  large  and  small  cows. 
Cows  weighing  1100  pounds  or  more  were  taken  as  large  cows 
and  those  weighing  less  than  1100  pounds  as  small  cows.  This 
test  was  started  by  Mr.  P.  R.  Feddersohh,  a student  of  the 
Dairy  Division  of  the  College,  under  the  supervision  of  Mr. 
R.  E.  Hundertmark,  and  lasted  but  five  months.  The  results 
showed  that  with  the  cost  of  feed  alone  considered  the  small 
cows  produced  butter  fat  for  one  cent  per  pound  less  than  the 
large  cows,  but  did  not  produce  milk  as  cheaply.  When  the 
total  expenses  were  considered  the  large  cows  produced  but- 
ter fat  at  three  cents  less  per  pound  and  milk  at  57  cents  less 
per  hundred  than  the  small  cows.  The  data  taken  on  this 
short  test  tend  to  show  that  the  larger  dairy  animal  having  a 
large  capacity  for  consuming  feed  is  the  more  economical  and 
more  profitable  animal.  However,  these  conclusions  are  tenta- 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  11 

tive,  and  to  obtain  conclusive  results  it  will  be  necessary  to 
continue  the  test  for  several  years,  which  it  is  planned  to  do. 

Farm  Crops. 

The  experimental  work  in  Farm  Crops  consists  large- 
ly of  experiments  conducted  in  the  field.  The  year’s 
work  includes  the  results  of  the  1914  crop  and  the 
planting  of  the  1915  crop.  The  investigations  are  being  con- 
ducted under  four  separate  projects. 

Variety  Testing. 

The  variety  testing  has  been  continued  and  includes 
tests  with  winter  and  spring  wheat,  winter  and  spring  bar- 
ley, rye,  corn  and  grain  mixtures. 

Sixty-five  varieties  of  winter  wheat  and  eighty  varieties 
of  spring  wheat  were  tested  in  the  nursery;  twenty-three 
varieties  of  winter  wheat  and  thirteen  varieties  of  spring 
wheat  were  tested  in  the  field  plots.  Seventy-eight  varieties 
of  winter  and  spring  barley  were  tested  in  the  nursery  and 
ten  in  field  plots.  One  hundred  and  twenty-three  varieties 
of  oats  were  tested  in  the  nursery  and  ten  were  tested  in 
field  plots.  The  nursery  tests  were  made  in  rod  rows  run  in 
triplicate  and  the  field  tests  in  duplicate  one-fortieth  acre 
plots.  Several  tests  were  made  of  rye  and  grain  mixtures. 

The  two  leading  varieties  of  corn  grown  at  the  Experi- 
ment Station  have  been  imnroved  by  selection.  An  ear-row 
test  was  conducted  with  each  of  these  varieties.  The  product 
of  the  highest  producing  ears  of  the  1914  crop  was  used  for 
seed  in  1915.  A rate  and  spacing  test  was  conducted  with 
corn.  Two  and  three  stalks  per  hill  p*ave  a larger  yield  than 
three  and  four  stalks  per  hill.  The  hills  were  planted  34-  feet 
apart  each  way.  Twelve  varieties  are  being  tested  in  1915. 

The  tests  carried  on  in  cooperation  with  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture  to  determine  the  value  of 
local  and  introduced  seeds  was  continued. 

Bulletin  No.  121  of  the  Washington  Experiment  Station 
gives  the  results  of  variety  testing  with  wheat  for  a period 
of  years  as  well  as  the  yields  for  1914.  Hybrid  128,  a winter 
variety,  stands  highest  of  all  the  varieties  tested  in  both 
yield  and  quality.  Bluestem  gave  the  highest  yield  of  the 
spring  wheats  in  1914,  but  Marquis  gave  a higher  yield  for  a 
two-year  average. 

Swedish  Select  oats  proved  to  be  superior  of  the  oat 
varieties  and  Tapp’s  Winter  barley  was  the  highest  yielding 
barley. 


C C 
C3  93 


;G.L  Each  pile  of  corn  is  the  product  of  a single  ear.  The  parent  ears  were  planted  in  rows  of  equal  length 
under  uniform  conditions.  Corn  is  being  improved  by  saving  the  seed  of  those  ears  which  produce  a high  yield, 
discarding  the  seed  of  inferior  ears. 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  13 


Increase  and  Distribution  of  Seed. 

Seed  of  the  most  successful  varieties  was  again  distrib- 
uted among  farmers  in  order  to  encourage  their  production., 
Seeds  of  superior  varieties  not  known  to  be  generally  suc- 
cessful were  sent  to  farmers  in  special  cases  to  obtain  in- 
formation concerning  their  value.  The  following  table  shows 
the  number  of  persons  receiving  seed  and  the  number  of 
counties  into  which  it  went: 


Name  of  Crop 

No.  of  Parties 

No.  of  Counties 

Corn 

892 

37 

Field  Peas  

116 

30 

Oats  

38 

19 

Wheat  

1 36 

9 

Barley  

1 16 

9 

Sudan  Grass 

! 22 

1 14 

Twenty-one  samples  of  miscellaneous  crops  were  distrib- 
uted to  various  persons. 

Inheritance  Studies. 

The  studies  of  inheritance  have  been  conducted  with 
wheat,  oats,  barley  and  rye.  The  investigations  with  wheat 
include  the  qualitative  characters  and  smut  resistance.  The 
inheritance  of  such  specific  characters  as  beards,  head  length 
and  grain  color,  and  the  general  characters  of  drought  resist- 
ance, milling  quality  and  stiffness  of  straw  are  among  those 
which  are  being  investigated.  Many  of  the  specific  charac- 
ters have  been  found  to  behave  in  a manner  that  can  be  def- 
initely predicted  when  certain  varieties  are  crossed.  The  in- 
heritance of  some  of  the  more  general  characters  remains 
to  be  determined. 

The  difference  in  the  resistance  of  different  varieties  of 
wheat  to  smut  has  been  determined.  Various  crosses  are  be- 
ing made  for  the  purpose  of  producing  more  valuable  varie- 
ties with  a less  tendency  to  smut. 

The  studies  with  oats  include  the  inheritance  of  panicle 
type,  glume  color,  hullessness,  etc.  Similar  studies  are  being 
made  with  barley.  In  the  work  with  rye  attempts  are  being 
made  to  obtain  a variety  without  beards.  Three  generations 
or  four  crop  seasons  are  necessay  to  determine  the  inheri- 
tance of  specific  characters  of  unknown  value. 

Forage  Investigations. 

The  major  part  of  the  forage  investigations  now  being 
conducted  were  started  in  the  spring  of  1914.  Work  is  being 
done  principally  with  alfalfa,  clovers  and  perennial  grasses. 


FIG.  IL  Varieties  of  wheat  and  other  small  grains  are  tested  in  small  plots  in  the  grain  nursery  where  a careful 
study  is  made  of  them.  They  are  also  tested  in  larger  plots  in  the  field. 


• WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL.  EXPERIMENT  STATION  15 


Ninety  selections  were  started  with  100  plants  in  each  plot. 
These  plots  show  that  there  is  sufficient  variation  within  a 
single  commercial  variety  to  make  further  improvement  by 
straight  selection. 

A rate  of  seeding  test  was  started  with  alfalfa.  The  fol- 
lowing results  were  obtained  in  1914  for  the  total  of  two  crops 
harvested: 

Rows  7 inches  apart,  7443  pounds  per  acre 

Rows  14  inches  apart,  7271  pounds  per  acre 

Rows  28  inches  apart,  6270  pounds  per  acre 

A variety  of  alfalfa  developing  root  stalks  was  found  in 

the  forage  nursery.  Desirable  plants  of  the  clovers  and  per- 
ennial grasses  have  been  selected  for  the  improvement  of 
these  crops.  A field  of  mixed  pasture  was  planted  in  the 
spring  of  1912.  The  object  of  this  experiment  was  to  de- 
termine the  ability  of  these  crops  to  endure  under  pasture 
conditions.  The  mixture  included  Kentucky  blue  grass,  timo- 
thy, orchard  grass,  brome  grass,  red  top,  alfalfa,  red  clover, 
alsike  clover  and  white  clover.  Abundant  pasture  has  been 
furnished  from  this  field  each  year.  Some  of  the  grasses, 
however,  are  giving  way  to  others  which  are  more  hardy. 
Orchard  grass  predominates,  and  timothy,  Kentucky  blue 
grass  and  brome  grass  are  found  in  less  quantity  and  there 
is  only  a trace  of  red  top.  Alfalfa  has  persisted  better  than 
the  other  legumes. 

Besides  the  four  projects  named  above  the  division  is  co- 
operating with  the  Chemistry  division  in  determining  the  ef- 
fect of  cultivation  on  yield. 

Soil  Physics. 

Soil  Moisture  Investigations. 

For  the  past  three  seasons  investigations  have  been  con- 
ducted to  determine  the  water  requirements  of  some  of  the 
more  important  agricultural  crops.  These  investigations 
were  carried  on  in  the  field  under  semi-arid  conditions.  One- 
twentieth  acre  plots  were  used  and  all  trials  were  conducted 
in  duplicate.  There  were  eight  check  plots,  upon  which  no 
crops  were  grown.  These  check  plots  were  kept  well  mulched 
with  a three-inch  granular  mulch  throughout  the  growing 
season.  Owing  to  the  slight  summer  rainfall,  the  mulch  was 
well  maintained  and  quite  uniform  during  the  entire  period. 

Moisture  determinations  were  made  to  a depth  of  ten 
feet  at  time  of  planting  and  at  harvest  on  both  cropped  and 
check  plots.  From  these  moisture  determinations  the  loss 
throughout  the  season  was  ascertained.  The  difference  be- 


16 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


tween  the  cropped  and  check  plots  is  what  was  taken  by  the 
crops.  To  this  must  be  added  the  rainfall  during  the  grow- 
ing period.  The  total  amount  of  moisture  necessary  to  grow 
the  crops  herein  mentioned  is  the  sum  of  the  three  factors, 
viz.,  transpiration,  soil  evaporation  and  the  rain  which  fell 
during  the  growing  season. 

The  following  table  gives  the  yield  and  water  require- 
ment of  seven  of  the  more  important  agricultural  crops.  The 
first  column  gives  the  name  of  the  crop,  the  second  the  yield 
of  grain,  the  third  the  yield  of  straw  and  the  fourth  the  ratio 
of  weight  of  grain  to  weight  of  straw  (meaning  that  for 
every  100  pounds  of  wheat  there  was  145  pounds  of  straw 
produced).  The  fifth  column  gives  the  acre  inches  of  water 
transpired  through  the  growing  crop,  the  sixth  column,  the 
acre  inches  of  water  evaporated  from  the  soil  during  the 
growing  season,  the  seventh  column,  the  amount  of  rainfall 
during  the  same  period  and  the  last  column,  the  total  acre 
inches  necessary  to  produce  the  amount  of  crop  given  in  the 
second  and  third  columns: 


Crop 

1 Yield,  Average  3 Yrs. 

Ratio  ; 
Grain  to 
Straw  j 

Water  Boss- 

-Acre  Inches 

{ Grain 
' Bushels 

straw 

Tons 

Transpi- 

ration 

Evapora- 

tion 

Rainfall  ’ 

1 Total 

Wheat 

44.2 

1.86 

1:1.4  5 

12.75 

3.36 

3.30 

! 19.41 

Oats.  . 

85.0 

1.72 

1:1.27 

9.95 

2.47 

3.30 

1 15.72 

Barle> 

48.4 

1.64 

1:1.50 

, 8.80 

2.00 

3.30 

1 14.10 

Corn. 

33.4 

1.88 

1:1.61 

3.72 

2.36 

3.15 

! 9.2  3 

Peas . 

31.5 

1.27 

1:1.34 

1 7.33 

1.82 

3.30 

12.45 

Beans 

9.7 

.51 

1:1.75 

3.47 

2.57 

3.15  ; 

9.19 

Millet 

2.75 

1 

6.54 

1.92 

2.4  5 

10.91 

The  variation  in  the  amounts  of  evaporation  from  the  soil 
for  the  different  crops  is  due  to  the  difference  in  length  of 
growing  seasons  of  the  several  crops.  The  rainfall  given  is 
for  the  growing  season  of  the  crop  in  question.  The  last  col- 
umn gives  the  amount  of  water  necessary  to  grow  the  above 
crops  and  in  a way  shows  what  can  be  done  with  a given  rain- 
fall. 

In  studying  the  nitrate  development  of  the  soil,  it  is  a 
common  occurrence  to  find  a soil  sample  having  an  exception- 
ally high  nitrate  content,  out  of  proportion  to  any  other 
sample  in  the  field  at  that  depth  or  on  that  plot  from  which 
it  came.  Because  of  this  occasional  high  sample,  an  attempt 
was  made  to  ascertain  whether  there  is  any  variation  in  the 
distribution  of  the  nitrates  at  relatively  small  distances.  The 
method  employed  in  this  experiment  is  as  follows: 

A cubic  yard  of  soil  was  so  laid  off  that  a sample  was  tak- 
en every  four  inches,  parallel  to  the  faces  of  the  cube.  This 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  17 


made  one  thousand  samples  from  the  cube.  These  were  an- 
alyzed for  nitrate  content  and  the  summary  of  the  results  are 
shown  in  the  following  table: 

Table,  showing  the  nitrate  content  of  a cubic  yard  of  soil  sam- 
ples taken  at  intersection  of  planes,  4 inches  apart,  in  the  three  djl- 
mensions.  The  table  gives  the  nitrates  between  certain  limits,  e.  g., 
1-2  P.  P.  means  that  readings  were  between  one  and  two  parts  per 
million  of  dry  soil. 


No.  of  samples  with  a nitrate  content 
between 


100  samples  at  each  depth. 

1-2  2-3 

P.  P. 
P.  P. 
M.  M. 

3-4 

P. 

P. 

M. 

4-5 

P. 

P. 

M. 

! 5-6  6-7 
P.  ! P. 
P.  P. 
M.  M. 

7-8 

P. 

P. 

M. 

8-9 

P. 

P. 

9-10 

1 P. 

1 P. 
M. 

10- 
1 p. 

; P- 

_M.^ 

Surface  

5 , 40 

34 

11 

3 , 11 

2 

1 

2 

1 

4 inches  

7 - 45 

30 

9 

4 ! 0 

1 

2 

0 

2 

8 inches  

4 31 

47 

10 

2 1 

2 

3 

0 

0 

12  inches  

4 29 

35 

21 

4 0 

2 

2 

2 

1 

16  inches  

13  52 

23 

8 

1 i 0 

1 

0 

1 1 

0 

20  inches  

19  47 

22 

7 

2 1 

0 

0 

0 i 

2 

24  inches  

28  44 

19 

5 , 

0 , 1 

2 

1 

0 

0 

28  inches  

29  47 

21 

2 

0 1 

0 

0 1 

0 

0 

.12  inches  

27  36 

21 

2 i 2 

0 

0 i 

0 1 

3 

.36  inches  

20  i J8_ 

21 

6 ! 

7 3 

0 

_lj 

__0__l 

2 

Total 

156  409 

273 

87 

25  20 

10  1 

10  1 

6 1 

11 

The  samples  containing  more  than  ten  parts  per  million 
of  nitrates  were  as  follows: 


Depth  at  which  samples  were  taken 

Number  of  sam 
pies  containing 
more  than  10 

P.  P.  M. 

iNirate 

P. 

content  Ir 
P.  M. 

Surface 

1 

15.6 

4 inches  

2 

37.4 

16.1 

8 inches  

0 

12  inches  

1 

10.4 

16  inches  

0 

20  inches  

2 

104.0 

10.9 

24  inches 

0 

28  inches  

0 

32  inches  

3 

15.6 

26.0  17.2 

36  inches  

2 

41.6 

19.8 

The  samples  containing  more  than  ten  parts  of  nitrates 
per  million  of  dry  soil  constitute  1.1%  of  the  total  number  of 
samples  taken,  and  their  total  nitrate  content  is  approximate- 
ly 10.0 7o  of  the  total  nitrate  as  contained  in  all  samples. 

Cultivation  has  a marked  effect  on  nitrate  development 
in  the  silt  loam  soil  of  the  Palouse  region.  A selected  tract 
was  laid  out  in  eleven  one-tenth  acre  plots,  each  plot  received 
different  methods  of  tillage  as  indicated  in  Bulletin  No.  123. 

Nitrate  determinations  have  been  made  in  this  field  the 
past  year  for  the  purpose  of  studying  the  effect  of  tillage 
upon  the  nitrate  development  in  the  soils  of  each  of  these 
plots. 


18 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


The  results  indicated  that  in  early  spring,  just  before  the 
plants  begin  to  use  the  soil  solution,  we  find  the  highest  nit- 
rate content  in  the  soil.  Two  months  later  there  is  only  a 
small  amount  left,  but  it  is  in  the  same  proportion  as  in  April 
and  at  harvest  time  there  is  still  less.  In  November,  two  and 
one-half  months  after  harvest  there  is  a slight  increase  but 
not  until  the  fall  rains  come  is  there  a very  material  devel- 
opment. Then  again  the  following  spring  saw  a marked  in- 
crease in  those  plots  which  were  fall  plowed,  showing  the  ad- 
vantage of  fall  plowing. 

There  is  a very  marked  difference  in  the  physical  con- 
dition, humus  and  water  holding  capacity  of  the  soils  of  the 
different  hill  slopes  and  hill  tops  of  the  Palouse  country  and 
along  with  the  above  difference  there  is  also  a difference  in 
the  nitrate  content.  (See  Page  29). 

During  the  past  season  (1914)  a portion  of  the  sub-sta- 
tion at  Grandview,  in  the  irrigated  section  of  the  Yakima  val- 
ley, was  set  apart  for  duty  of  water  study.  The  crops  se- 
lected for  these  studies  were  corn  and  potatoes.  The  rainfall 
for  the  season  was  7.35  inches,  nearly  all  of  which  was  avail- 
able to  the  growing  crops. 

The  following  table  gives  the  results  of  these  experi- 
ments: 


Crop 

Inches  of 
water  applied 

Bushels 
per  acre 

Busliels  per 
acre  inch 

Corn 

4 

64.0 

16.0 

Corn 

8 

65.8 

8.2 

Corn 

12 

57.8 

4.8 

Corn 

16 

47.4 

2.9 

Corn 

20 

48.6 

2.4 

Potatoes 

4 

165,6 

41.4 

Potatoes 

7 

176.6  . 

25.2 

Potatoes 

10 

217.0 

21.7 

Potatoes 

13 

233.6 

17.9 

Potatoes 

16 

241.6 

15.1 

Potatoes 

19 

233.6 

12.3 

Potatoes 

21 

247.3 

11.8 

Potatoes 

24 

222.0 

9.2 

2Q  TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 

During  this  same  season  (1914),  a study  of  the  percola- 
tion of  water  was  made  in  different  soils.  The  soils  selected 
and  given  in  the  following  chart  are  coarse  sand,  medium 


FIG.  IV.  Percolation  of  irrigation  water  per  hour  per  100  feet  of 
furrow.  A.  Uniform,  coarse,  sandy  loam  of  great  depth.  B.  Med- 
ium sandy  loam  with  impervious  hardpan  at  twent-two  inches.  C. 
Uniform,  fine,  sandy  loam  of  great  depth. 

sandy  loam  and  fine  sandy  loam.  Attention  is  called  to  the 
gradual  decrease  in  the  absorptive  power  of  the  soil  as  the 
time  increases  with  the  application  of  water. 

DIVISION  OF  BOTANY. 

In  addition  to  the  regular  work  upon  six  projects  the  Di- 
vision of  Botany  has  done  a large  amount  of  analytical  work 
in  connection  with  the  bacteriological  examination  of  cream, 
milk,  butter,  cheese,  and  water. 

Identification  and  Study  of  Miscellaneous  Diseases  and  Fungi. 

The  work  indicated  by  the  above  topic  has  included  speci- 
mens and  inquiries  from  the  following  sources: 

1.  General  disease  inquiries  from  farmers,  orchardists, 
or  others  interested  in  plant  production. 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  21 


2.  The  study  of  specimens  submitted  by  the  county  ag- 
riculturists and  the  state  horticultural  inspectors. 

3.  The  study  and  identification  of  diseases  found  by  the 
pathologist  and  assistants  in  the  vicinity  of  Pullman  and  on 
the  Experiment  Station  farm  or  elsewhere  in  the  state. 

A detailed  report  on  the  diseases  known  to  be  prevalent 
will  be  completed  at  a later  time  and  submitted  for  record 
and  publication. 

All  specimens  received  for  diagnosis  are  numbered  and 
filed  for  future  reference,  togetlier  with  full  information 
concerning  studies  made,  and  a copy  of  the  information  furn- 
ished to  the  person  sending  the  material.  The  material  re- 
ceived for  identification  is  filed  under  the  “Identification 
Series.”  The  material  collected  is  recorded  and  filed  under  a 
separate  “Collection  Series.”  Both  series  are  made  readily 
available  by  a card  catalog  arranged  according  to  hosts. 

As  a result  of  this  work  up  to  date  a large  number  of 
new  or  little  known  diseases  have  been  studied  and  quite  a 
number  appear  to  be  of  considerable  importance  and  merit 
further  and  more  detailed  consideration.  Among  those  of 
special  importance  the  following  may  be  mentioned: 

1.  Blight  of  alfalfa,  due  to  a fungus  as  yet  undeter- 
mined. 

2.  Bacteriosis  of  cherries,  a fruit  disease.  - 

3.  Bacteriosis  of  field  peas. 

4.  California  blight  as  a disease  of  plums  and  cherries 
as  well  as  peaches  and  apricots. 

5.  “Tubers  but  no  tops,”  a potato  trouble  of  Western 
Washington. 

6.  Crown  rot  of  the  apple. 

7.  Rough  b?rk  disease  of  prune. 

8.  Silver  twig  of  prune. 

9.  Cane  blight  of  roses. 

10.  Septoria  blight  of  wheat. 

In  addition  many  diseases  have  been  reported  for  which 
the  control  me?>sures  are  only  im.perfectly  known.  Many  di- 
seases of  scientific  interest  but  of  minor  economic  importance 
have  been  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  department.  Work 
on  the  life  history  of  the  causal  organisms  of  one  of  these 
troubles,  the  Sclerotinia  disease  of  Prunus  demissa  and  Amel- 
anchier  cusickii,  has  been  conducted. 

Brown  Rot  of  Prunes. 

Complaints  of  prune  failures  in  Clarke  County  have  led 
to  the  beginning  of  an  investigation  of  the  part  which  the 


22 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


brown  rot  iungus,,  Sclerotinia  cinerea,  is  playing  in  these  loss- 
es. A visit  to  the  region  was  made  during  the  month  of 
March  and  affected  orchards  were  inspected  at  this 
time  the  orchards  were  nearly  ready  to  blossom. 
The  first  study  to  be  made  was  concerned  with  the  deter- 
mination of  the  presence  of  blossom  blight.  Since  it  was  not 
possible  to  remain  in  the  region  and  study  the  problem  under 
field  conditions,  the  next  best  method  of  procedure  was 
adopted.  A selected  list  of  about  75  prune  growers,  each  own- 
ing 10  or  more  acres  of  trees,  was  obtained.  Some  of  these 
were  visited  personally  and  a circular  letter  was  at  once  sent 
to  all. 

As  a result  of  the  study  of  the  specimens  received  the 
following  facts  can  be  reported: 

1.  Blossom  blight  of  prunes,  due  to  Sclerotivia  cinerea 
is  present  in  Clarke  County  and  is  at  least  one  of  the  factors 
in  causing  prune  failures. 

2.  A condition  termed  “silver  twig”  is  generally  pres- 
ent. Whether  this  is  of  importance  remains  to  be  -proved 
by  further  studies. 

Powdery  Mildew  of  Apple. 

Experiments  on  the  control  of  powdery  mildew  of  apple 
have  been  in  progress  in  the  orchard  of  A.  M.  Pearce,  North 
Yakima,  and  are  designed  to  give  some  light  on  the  two  fol- 
lowing points: 

1.  The  comparative  efficiency  of  certain  fungicides: 

(a)  The  modified  Ballard  formula. 

(b)  Precipitated  sulphur  (3  formulae). 

(c)  Atomic  sulphur. 

(d)  Lime-sulphur. 

2.  The  value  of  pruning  or  the  removal  of  the  blighted 
shoots  in  the  control  of  the  disease. 

The  many  inquiries  concerning  powdery  mildew  indicate 
that  this  trouble  is  rapidly  increasing  in  Washington,  on  the 
West  Side,  as  well  as ‘in  the  irrigated  sections  of  the  Wenat- 
chee and  Yakima  valleys. 

^Gooseberry  Mildew. 

_ The  work  on  this  project  was  continued  during  the  past 
spring  and  the  results  were  most  gratifying.  Since  previous 
work  had  pointed  to  the  fact  that  lime-sulphur  was  more  ef- 
fective than  any  of  the  other  fungicides  tested  it  was  decided 
to  use  this  alone  and  vary  the  concentration  and  number  of 
applications. 

The  very  satisfactory  control  of  the  mildew  on  both  Euro- 
pean and  American  varieties  of  gooseberries  during  the  past 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  23 


season  seems  to  justify  the  conclusion  that  the  method  fol- 
lowed is  entirely  effective.  This  control  calls  for: 

1.  Careful  pruning  and  cultivation. 

2.  Spraying  with  lime-sulphur. 

Much  of  our  success  is  to  be  attributed  to  the  first  one  of 
these  operations. 

It  shoud  be  pointed  out  that  the  season  was  very  favor- 
able for  mildew,  and  this  is  substantiated  by  the  severe  in- 
fection of  the  unsprayed  fruits. 

Tomato  Blight. 

During  the  present  season  it  was  deemed  advisable  to  re- 
strict the  experimental  work  on  this  disease  to  Pullman,  since 
the  profitable  continuation  of  the  study  involves  the  estab- 
lishment of  a number  of  fundamental  facts.  Since  the  publi- 
cation of  Bulletin  115  some  doubt  has  been  cast  on  the  valid- 
ity of  the  conclusion  that  the  blight  is  caused  by  Fusarium. 

The  experimental  work  in  progress  has  been  planned  to 
give  some  definite  facts  which  will  settle  the  following  with 
reasonable  certainty: 

1.  Is  Fusarrium  orthoceas  related  to  the  tomato  blight 
as  the  casual  agent 

2.  Is  there  any  relation  between  Rhizoctonia  infected 
soils  and  the  Western  Blight? 

The  answers  to  the  two  questions  is  fundamental  and  the 
nature  of  further  work  must  hinge  upon  the  results  obtained. 

If  the  conclusions  of  the  season’s  experiments  point  to 
the  causal  relation  of  Fusarium  or  any  other  parasite  to  the 
disease  the  further  work  on  the  prevention  or  control  of  the 
disease  must  be  along  the  following  lines: 

1.  Selection  and  breeding  of  disease  resistant  varieties. 

2.  Testing  the  effect  of  cultural  practices. 

Wheat  Smut. 

One  of  the  largest  agricultural  problems  confronting  the 
Experiment  Station  at  the  present  time  is  the  control  of 
stinking  smut  of  wheat,  probably  one  the  of  the  most  ser- 
ious plant  diseases  of  the  Pacific  Northwest.  In  September, 
1914,  a bulletin  (Popular  Bulletin  No.  73)  was  published  set- 
ting forth  the  results  of  investigations  to  date  in  regard  to 
the  smut  question.  The  investigations  were  conducted  in 
three  separate  lines:  first,  variety  testing  for  resistance  to 
smut;  second,  methods  of  seed  treatment,  and  third,  soil 
treatment. 

Results  of  the  year’s  variety  tests  with  reference  to 
smut  resistance,  as  published  in  the  above  mentioned  bulle- 


24 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


tin,  would  indicate  that  Hybrids  143  and  128,  club  wheats, 
were  much  more  resistant  than  Forty  Fold  and  Red  Russian. 
However,  results  obtained  the  following  season,  that  is,  dur- 
ing the  fiscal  year  lyl6-16,  throw  considerable  doubt  upon 
this  point  and  indicate  that  the  club  wheats  are  perhaps 
more  susceptible  than  others.  On  the  whole,  it  would  seem 
that  considerable  variation  in  a given  variety  with  reference 
to  smut  resistance  must  exist  from  year  to  year.  It  is  prob- 
ably not  safe  to  draw  general  conclusions  in  regard  to  the  re- 
sistance of  the  various  wheats  to  smut  from  the  data  at  hand. 
Considerable  popular  prejudice  exists  in  some  quarters 
against  the  club  wheats  on  account  of  the  fact  that  it  is 
thought  that  they  are  more  susceptible  to  smut.  The  fact, 
however,  that  these  same  club  wheats  usually  will  consider- 
ably outyield  the  other  varieties  and  thus  more  than  offset 
any  increased  susceptibility  which  may  exist  might  still  make 
it  advisable  to  grow  them  in  preference  to  the  other  wheats. 

With  reference  to  seed  treatment,  little  can  be  added  to 
results  given  in  last  year’s  report:  namely,  that  a treatment 
of  seed  for  ten  minutes  with  a solution  of  one  pound  of  cop- 
per sulfate  plus  one  pound  of  sodium  chloride  to  five  gallons 
of  water  has  proved  the  most  feasible  form  of  treatment.  The 
use  of  formaldehyde,  one  pound  to  forty  gallons  of  water, 
for  not  less  than  thirty  minutes  is  equally  efficient,  but  the 
method  is  not  so  satisfactory  for  Washington  conditions  as 
the  copper  sulfate  method. 

The  fact  that  effective  seed  treatment  does  not  entirely 
solve  the  smut  problem  in  Eastern  Washington  renders  the 
whole  question  more  complex  and  difficult  than  in  some  other 
portions  of  the  world.  That  smut  in  the  form  of  smut  balls 
can  remain  in  the  soil  from  year  to  year  and  retain  its  vitality, 
thus  infecting  plants  whose  seed  have  been  previously  treat- 
ed, makes  the  problem  much  more  complex.  This  is  further 
aggravated  by  the  fact  that  during  the  threshing  season 
enormous  numbers  of  smut  spores  are  scattered  over  the  sur- 
face of  all  fields.  With  the  arrival  of  the  fall  rains  and  the 
proper  temperature  these  spores,  of  course,  germinate.  If 
wheat  is  sprouting  at  the  same  time,  the  result  is  a large 
measure  of  infection. 

Experiments  are  being  conducted  to  determine  the  dura- 
tion of  soil  infection  when  crushed  smut  balls  are  placed  in 
the  soil  at  plow  depth;  also  when  whole  smutted  heads  are  so 
treated.  Tests  are  also  being  conducted  upon  various  tillage 
practices;  as  the  effect  of  rolling  the  soil  after  planting  with 
different  weights  to  a given  area  of  soil  and  the  effect  of  dif- 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  26 


ferent  methods  of  tillage  and  summer  fallow  following  a 
smutted  crop.  Experiments  are  being  conducted  to  deter- 
mine the  effect  of  varying  percentages  of  soil  moisture  upon 
smut  infection,  and  the  duration  of  smut  infection  in  the 
soil  to  which  crushed  smut  balls  have  been  added.  Tests  on 
the  effect  of  the  time  of  planting  on  the  per  cent  of  smut  and 
the  determination  of  the  age  of  the  seedlings  at  which  smut 
infection  cannot  take  place,  and  the  portion  of  the  seedling 
wmch  IS  most  susceptible  to  smut  infection  are  being  con- 
ducted. During  the  previous  fiscal  year  considerable  work 
was  done  upon  the  relation  of  separator  injury  of  seed  to 
siiiut  infection.  This  work  is  being  followed  the  present  year 
and  tests  to  determine  the  comparative  resistance  of  differ- 
ent varieties  to  threshing  injury  and  the  relation  of  this 
to  smut  infection  are  also  being  conducted. 

Anatomical  and  cytological  studies  are  being  carried  on 
to  determine  more  definitely  the  relation  of  the  smut  fungus 
to  the  host  plant,  especially  from  the  standpoint  of  partial  in- 
fection, which  is  not  always  visible  by  the  production  of  smut 
balls.  It  has  been  found  not  only  that  large  numbers  of  heads 
will  be  only  partially  smutted,  but  very  frequently  a single 
grain  will  be  partialy  smutted;  that  is,  contain  a small  area  of 
one-fourth  to  one-half  the  kernel  occupied  by  smut  spores. 

Dr.  Sophia  Eckerson,  working  upon  the  Progressive  De- 
velopment of  the  Wheat  Kernel  from  the  cytological  stand- 
point, incidentally  discovered  that  wheat  grains  may  be  par- 
tially infected  to  a very  small  extent,  containing  but  a half 
dozen  spores.  It  is  impossible,  of  course,  to  recognize  any 
difference  between  wheat  thus  infected  and  normal  wheat. 
Treatment  of  this  kind  of  seed  with  fungicides  would,  of 
course,  be  ineffective;  and  the  fact  that  wheat  may  frequent- 
ly be  partially  smutted  in  this  way  greatly  increases  the  com- 
plexity of  the  smut  problem  as  a whole. 

Metabolism  of  the  Tubercle  Bacterium. 

A study  is  being  made  of  the  metabolism  of  the  bovine 
tubercle  bacterium.  Quick  methods  of  isolation  of  the  organ- 
ism have  been  devised  and  a synthetic  medium  has  been 
made  which  promises  to  be  of  value  in  the  work.  The  work 
upon  the  project  has  continued  but  a short  time. 

Physiological  Effect  of  Sprays. 

Work  has  continued  upon  this  project  both  in  field  and 
greenhouse.  A study  is  being  made  of  the  effect  of  various 
spray  materials  upon  the  transpiration,  photosynthesis,  res- 


26  ' TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 

piration  and  accumulation  of  food  material  in  the  plant  tis- 
sues. A considerable  amount  of  data  has  been  accumulated 
and  the  project  is  being  continued. 

Soil  Physiology. 

Work  upon  this  project  dealing  with  the  physiological 
activities  of  various  micro-organisms  in  the  soil  and  their  ef- 
fect upon  the  soil  and  its  fertility  was  conducted  during  the 
first  portion  of  the  year,  but  it  was  necessarily  suspended 
during  the  latter  part  of  the  year  owing  to  the  resignation  of 
Mr.  Lindvall,  who  was  conducting  the  work. 

DIVISION  OF  CHEMISTRY. 

In  addition  to  the  work  upon  six  regularly  organized  pro- 
jects, the  Division  of  Chemistry  did  a large  amount  of  mis- 
cellaneous analytical  work  of  soils,  paints,  sprays,  foods,  oils, 
etc.  The  new  horticultural  law,  requiring  the  chemist  of  the 
Experiment  Station  to  pass  upon  the  composition  of  insecti- 
cides and  fungicides,  has  increased  materially  the  work  of  the 
Station  in  this  line  and  will  necessitate  increased  appropria- 
tions for  the  maintenance  of  the  work. 

Cooperative  Work  With  the  Association  of  Official  Agricul- 
tural Chemists. 

Following  the  policy  inaugurated  by  the  chemists  of  the 
several  Experiment  Stations  in  the  United  States,  this  Divis- 
ion has,  under  Project  C4,  cooperated  with  the  Association  of 
Official  Agricultural  Chemists  along  some  useful  line  of  re- 
search such  as  standardization  of  analytical  methods.  One 
of  the  lines  of  research  that  was  followed  is  the  estimation 
of  mono,  di,  and  tri  calcium  phosphates  in  the  presence  of  each 
other.  The  results  of  the  research  work  in  connection  with 
the  estimation  of  the  above  described  forms  of  phosphates 
have  ben  discussed  and  published  as  General  Bulletin  116  of 
this  Station. 

Recently  the  Division  also  did  cooperative  work  for  the 
Association  on  methods  for  the  quantitative  estimation  of  ar- 
senic tri  and  pentoxides. 

Sulphur  as  Plant  Food. 

While  there  are  various  important  lines  for  research  on 
the  sulphur  project  it  has  been  found  necessary  to  limit  the 
investigational  work  to  a study  of  the  importance  of  sulphur 
as  plant  food.  According  to  the  present  plans  this  problem 
is  being  pursued  in  two  directions.  In  one  series  the  investi- 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  27 

gational  work  is  with  the  local  soil  and  in  the  other  series 
with  cultural  material  in  pure  quartz.  The  soil  is  divided 
into  two  lots,  in  one  of  which  the  sulphur  content  is  being 
maintained  and  in  the  other  the  sulphur  is  gradually  being 
removed  with  the  harvest  of  each  crop.  The  flowers  of  sul- 
phur added  to  the  one  lot  of  soils  will  not  only  determine  the 
importance  of  sulphur  as  plant  food  material,  but  will  also  de- 
termine whether  or  not  flowers  of  sulphur  will  act  as  a sub- 
stitute for  the  existing  sulphur  compounds  in  the  soil  util- 
ized by  the  plants.  Later  it  is  intended  to  determine  wheth- 
er or  not  sulphur  must  be  oxidized  before  it  can  be  utilized 
by  the  plants. 

One  lot  of  the  quartz  series  is  entirely  free  from  sulphur 
while  the  other  lot  contains  a definite  amount  of  sulphur  in 
combination  with  the  other  plant  food  constituents  which  are 
considered  necessary  to  plant  growth. 

Wheat,  oats,  barley  and  some  legume  such  as  Canadian 
field  peas,  vetch  or  soy  beans  have  been  grown  in  both  the 
soil  and  quartz  series  with  the  object  of  determining  the  sul- 
phur needs  of  above  types  of  crops. 

The  total  sulphur  found  in  the  local  soil  was  0.038%, 
while  the  sulphur  treated  soil  showed  0.0413%.  If  the  plants 
continued  to  draw  upon  the  sulphur  content  to  the  extent 
found  in  the  percentage  composition  of  the  plants,  the  supply 
of  sulphur  will  be  exhausted  very  rapidly.  Taking  the  oat 
plants  grown  in  one  pot  as  an  example  it  is  found  that  they 
remove  0.2548  grams  of  sulphur  from  the  soil  of  the  pot. 
Computation  shows  the  soil  upon  which  they  grew  contained 
3.1979  grams  of  sulphur.  According  to  these  results  it  would 
require  only  12.55  such  crops  to  completely  remove  the  sul- 
phur contained  in  the  soil. 

Liming  Alfalfa. 

No  work  in  connection  with  this  project  has  been  under- 
taken during  the  past  two  years.  Reports  from  different 
parts  of  Oregon  as  well  as  in  this  state  show  large  profitable 
yields  from  the  use  of  gypsum,  especially  on  land  seeded  to  al- 
falfa. The  plans  as  outlined  in  this  project  will  furnish  in- 
formation as  to  the  value  of  sulphur  compounds  in  connection 
with  field  trials  on  various  kinds  of  crops.  It  is  hoped  that  it 
may  be  possible  to  secure  land  for  the  continuation  of  this 
work. 

Analyses  of  Insecticides,  Etc. 

The  insecticide  project  was  limited  to  the  analyses  of 
such  samples  of  insecticides  as  time  would  permit. 


ERRATA,— Thru  a printer  s accident  a transposition  of 
LINES  OCCURRED  ON  PAGE  27  OF  A PORTION  OF  THE  EDITION  OF 
BuL.  127,  Washington  Exp.  Sta. 


■ -? 


i 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  27 


Rational  work  is  with  the  local  soil  and  in  the  other  series 
with  cultural  material  in  pure  quartz.  The  soil  is  divided 
into  two  lots,  in  one  of  which  the  sulphur  content  is  being- 
maintained  and  in  the  other  the  sulphur  is  gradually  being 
removed  with  the  harvest  of  each  crop.  The  flowers  of  sul- 
phur added  to  the  one  lot  of  soils  will  not  only  determine  the 
importance  of  sulphur  as  plant  food  material,  but  will  also  de- 
termine whether  or  not  flowers  of  sulphur  will  act  as  a sub- 
stitute for  the  existing  sulphur  compounds  in  the  soil  util- 
ized by  the  plants.  Later  it  is  intended  to  determine  wheth- 
er or  not  sulphur  must  be  oxidized  before  it  can  be  utilized 
by  the  plants. 

One  lot  of  the  quartz  series  is  entirely  free  from  sulphur 
while  the  other  lot  contains  a definite  amount  of  sulphur  in 
combination  with  the  other  plant  food  constituents  which  are 
considered  necessary  to  plant  growth. 

Wheat,  oats,  barley  and  some  legume  such  as  Canadian 
field  peas,  vetch  or  soy  beans  have  been  grown  in  both  the 
soil  and  quartz  series  with  the  object  of  determining  the  sul- 
falfa.  The  plans  as  outlined  in  this  project  will  furnish  in- 
formation as  to  the  value  of  sulphur  compounds  in  connection 
with  field  trials  on  various  kinds  of  crops.  It  is  hoped  that  it 
may  be  possible  to  secure  land  for  the  continuation  of  this 
work. 

Analyses  of  Insecticides,  Etc. 

The  insecticide  project  was  limited  to  the  analyses  of 
such  samples  of  insecticides  as  time  would  permit, 
phur  needs  of  above  types  of  crops. 

The  total  sulphur  found  in  the  local  soil  was  0.088%, 
while  the  sulphur  treated  soil  showed  0.0413%.  If  the  plants 
continued  to  draw  upon  the  sulphur  content  to  the  extent 
found  in  the  percentage  composition  of  the  plants,  the  supply 
of  sulphur  will  be  exhausted  very  rapidly.  Taking  the  oat 
plants  grown  in  one  pot  as  an  example  it  is  found  that  they 
remove  0.2548  grams  of  sulphur  from  the  soil  of  the  pot. 
Computation  shows  the  soil  upon  which  they  grew  contained 
3.1979  grams  of  sulphur.  According  to  these  results  it  would 
require  only  12.55  such  crops  to  completely  remove  the  sul- 
phur contained  in  the  soil. 

Liming  Alfalfa. 

No  work  in  connection  with  this  project  has  been  under- 
taken during  the  past  two  years.  Reports  from  different 
parts  of  Oregon  as  well  as  in  this  state  show  large  profitable 
yields  from  the  use  of  gypsum,  especially  on  land  seeded  to  al- 


28 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


The  Progressive  Development  of  the  Wheat  Kernel. 

This  project  is  a cytological-chemical  problem  upon  the 
development  of  the  wheat  kernel  and  is  conducted  cooper- 
atively between  the  Divisions  of  Chemistry  and  Botany.  It 
has  been  under  investigation  for  several  years,  the  work 
done  being  chiefly  of  a macro-chemical  nature,  carried  on  by 
the  Division  of  Chemistry.  During  the  year  work  was  con- 
tinued in  the  Chemistry  Division,  especially  upon  enzymes 
involved  and  their  possible  relation  to  gluten  formation.  Dur- 
ing the  latter  part  of  the  fiscal  year  in  question.  Dr.  Sophia 
Eckerson  of  the  Department  of  Botany,  University  of  Chi- 
ago,  was  secured  to  carry  on  the  necessary  micro-chemical 
work  upon  the  problem.  Dr.  G.  H.  Jensen  of  the  collegiate 
department  of  Botany  assisted  in  the  work  in  a study  of  the 
development  of  the  wheat  kernel  from  a morphological  stand- 
point. The  two  lines  of  investigation  were  under  way  at  the 
close  of  the  fiscal  year  and  will  be  completed  early  in  the  suc- 
ceeding year  and  results  published. 

The  Relation  of  Composition  of  Wheat  to  Soil  Types. 

The  project  is  limited  this  year  to  a control  study  of  soils 
from  the  northern  and  southern  slopes  compared  to  the  soil 
found  on  the  hilltop.  In  the  field  experiments  the  three 
types  of  soil  are  placed  along  side  of  each  other  in  plots 
three  feet  square  and  two  feet  deep  in  the  plots.  This  plan 
permits  of  a study  of  the  soils  under  the  same  conditions  of 
exposure,  sunlight,  temperature  and  wind  and  any  variation 
in  composition,  noticed  under  this  condition  must  be  attrib- 
uted to  a variation  directly  influenced  by  the  soil  itself. 

The  chemical  composition  (A.  0.  A.  C.)  of  the  soils  under 
study  in  this  project  are  as  follows: 

Chemical  Composition  of  Soils  in  This  Project. 


Hilltop 

Southern 

slope 

Northern 

slope 

Insoluble  silica  

78.26<7r 

77.74<^ 

76.76<^ 

Potash  (K2O)  

.35 

.36 

.174 

Calcium  (CaO)  

.48 

.67 

.70 

Ferric  and  aluminic  oxide  

1.15 

1.11 

1.04 

Phosphorus  pentoxide  (^2^6^ 

.22 

.17 

.243 

Volatile  and  organic  matter 

8.30 

9.80 

10.77 

Nitrogen  

.126 

.185 

.232 

WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  29 


Mr.  Henry  Holtz  of  the  Soils  Division  made  the  moisture 
and  nitrate  determinations  of  the  soils  used  in  this  work  on 
May  31,  1915. 

Moisture  and  Nitrate  Content  of  Soils  Used  in  This  Project. 


Hilltop 

Southern 

slope 

Northern 

slope 

Moisture,  first  foot  ; 

25.16<^ 

23.46% 

29.70% 

Moisture,  second  foot  

24  .68% 

26.91% 

32.10% 

X'O^,  parts  pel'  million,  first  foot  ; 

30.9 

50.5 

127.0 

NOg,  parts  per  million,  second  ft. 

83.7 

136.0 

162.8 

In  addition  to  the  field  experiments,  pot  culture  method 
under  greenhouse  conditions  with  the  above  described  soils, 
is  also  under  study. 

The  Baking  Qualities  of  Flour. 

Additional  experimental  work  on  the  water  soluble  com- 
ponents compared  to  the  insoluble  ones,  such  as  gluten,  con- 
firms the  earlier  investigational  work  that  the  water  soluble 
ingredients  play  a far  more  important  role  than  gluten  does 
in  panary  fermentation,  volume  and  texture  of  loaf.  The 
loaves  made  from  flour  without  the  water  soluble  materials 
but  with  gluten  in  combination  with  starch  result  in  com- 
pact, solid  masses;  while  flour  without  the  gluten  but 
containing  the  water  soluble  ingredients,  results  in  loaves  of 
considerable  size  and  open  in  texture. 

Influence  of  Cultivation  on  Nitrogen  Content  of  Wheat. 

From  approximately  800  samples  of  wheat  grown  at 
Grandview,  Ritzville  and  Pullman  some  2,000  nitrogen  de- 
terminations were  made.  In  the  Pullman  studies  the  results 
show  increases  in  the  nursery  selections  amounting  to  ap- 
proximately 33%  more  nitrogen  than  was  found  in  the  sam- 
ples taken  from  the  check  plots.  The  Grandview  selections 
showed  approximately  as  much  nitrogen  in  samples  collect- 
ed from  the  plots  receiving  20  inches  of  water  as  was  found 
in  the  samples  collected  from  the  plots  where  lesser  quanti- 
ties of  water  had  been  applied. 

The  results  for  1914  show  that  winter  wheat  can  be 
made  to  yield  as  high  a nitrogen  content  as  is  found  in  spring 
grown  crops. 

The  percent  of  nitrogen  in  the  Ritzville  wheat  compared 
to  the  Pullman  grown  wheat  was  higher.  The  more  irregular 
growth  and  the  poorer  stand  of  some  of  the  varieties  grown 
at  Ritzville  compared  with  the  better  growth  and  the  better 


30 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


stand  at  Pullman  is  undoubtedly  a factor  for  the  nitrogen 
difference  observed  at  the  places  mentioned. 

DRY  LAND  DIVISION. 

The  work  of  this  department  is  being  organized  with  the 
view  to  the  solution  of  the  problems  obtaining  in  the  drier 
portions  of  the  state  where  the  annual  rainfall  is  from  seven  to 
fourteen  inches,  the  area  comprised  being  chiefly  the  valley 
of  the  upper  Columbia.  The  following  lines  of  investigation 
have  been  planned: 

1.  Cereals — Varieties  of  wheat,  rye,  oats,  barley,  emmer, 
speltz,  and  other  cereals;  date,  rate,  and  depth  of  seeding; 
spring  cultivation  of  grain  crops;  breeding  of  cereals;  and  in- 
vestigations upon  cereal  diseases,  especially  smut. 

2.  Forage  crops — Field  trials  of  dry  land  alfalfa,  wheat, 
clover,  sorghums,  millet,  peas,  vetches,  rye,  etc.,  which  may  be 
suitable  for  the  dry  belt;  also  breeding  investigations  upon 
these  crops;  methods  and  management  of  forage  crops  for 
pasture  and  for  the  production  of  silage. 

3.  Investigations  in  crop  rotation. 

4.  Investigations  in  tillage. 

5.  Permanent  fertility  investigations. 

6.  Investigations  in  livestock  feeding  and  management 
for  the  dry  districts. 

7.  Farm  management  investigations,  dealing  with  the 
proper  organization  of  the  various  farm  enterprises  suitable 
for  dry  land  farming. 

8.  Home  betterment  problems,  dealing  chiefly  with 
orchard,  garden  and  tree  planting  for  improvement  of  liv- 
ing conditions  of  the  home,  as  well  as  the  improvement  in 
farm  buildings  and  sanitation. 

DIVISION  OF  ENTOMOLOGY  AND  ZOOLOGY. 

In  addition  to  a large  amount  of  miscellaneous  work  in 
the  control  of  agricultural  insect  pests  this  Division  has,  dur- 
ing the  year,  conducted  work  in  five  regularly  organized  pro- 
jects, one  of  which,  namely,  the  work  on  the  Columbian 
ground  squirrel,  has  been  completed.  Increased  difficulties 
with  the  codling  moth  in  the  fruit  districts  of  the  state  have 
made  it  necessary  for  the  Division  to  renew  investigations 
along  this  line  for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  values  of 
varying  applications  of  spray  in  order  to  get  a measure  if 
possible  of  the  added  benefit  to  be  secured  by  more  than  the 
calyx  application.  The  work  was  started  during  the  spring  of 
the  fiscal  year  in  question  and  therefore  results  are  not  yet 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  31 


available.  The  work  will  be  continued  during  the  succeeding 
year. 

Progressive  Immunity  of  Insects  to  Insecticides. 

Identical  solutions  were  again  sprayed  this  spring  in  or- 
chards at  Clarkston,  Walla  Walla,  Sunnyside,  North  Yakima 
and  Wenatchee.  Material  sprayed  included  various  forms  of 
calcium  polysulphide,  sodium  polysulphide,'  several  oil  emul- 
sions, as  well  as  the  individual  ingredients  comprising  the 
polysulphide  sprays.  The  last  group  of  sprays  was  tried  to  test 
the  insecticidal  value  of  the  separate  components.  Following 
the  spraying,  tri-weekly  counts  were  made  of  the  scale  insects 
to  record  the  rate  of  death  for  the  various  solutions  at  the 
different  places.  In  all  upwards  of  170,000  were  individually 
dissected  and  their  condition  recorded.  This  project  occupied 
practically  the  entire  time  of  the  entomologist  and  assistant 
during  the  spring  months.  A report  on  the  conclusions  for 
this  year  has  been  published  in  the  Journal  of  Economic  Ento- 
mology, Vol.  8,  pp.  475-480,  (Oct.  1915).  The  investigations 
have  shown  again  that  differences  in  viability  are  not  due  so 
much  to  the  strength  of  the  spray  employed  as  to  the  local- 
ity where  the  spraying  is  done.  Particularly  in  this  year’s 
test  weather  conditions  were  favorable  and  uniform  so  that 
the  immense  fluctuating  differences  cannot  be  ascribed  to 
climate;  neither  can  they  be  ascribed  to  the  conditions  of  the 
trees,  to  the  water  used  in  diluting  these  sprays,  to  the  com- 
parative thoroughness  of  application,  nor  to  apparently  any 
combination  of  extrinsic  factors.  Apparently  there  are  in- 
herent biological  differences  in  the  insects  at  the  various  lo- 
calities. Without  question  the  San  Jose  scale  has  become  so 
increasingly  prevalent  at  Clarkston  that  an  entire  change  in 
the  spraying  program  must  be  immediately  undertaken.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  regulation  spraying  with  sulphur  lime  at 
Wenatchee  has  so  completely  checked  this  insect  that  speci- 
mens for  experimentation  were  hard  to  secure.  It  is  of  in- 
terest to  note  that  within  the  limits  of  experimental  error 
the  sodium  polysulphides  have  given  similar  results  to  cah 
cium  polysulphides  when  used  at  similar  concentrations.  How- 
ever, at  present  prices  this  means  that  the  cost  of  spraying 
with  sodium  polysulphide  is  unnecessarily  great,  amounting 
in  fact  to  about  twice  the  cost  of  using  the  calcium  spray. 

In  this  series  of  tests  comparing  Wenatchee  with  Clark- 
ston, the  scales  at  the  former  place  averaged  about  50%  alive 
three  weeks  after  the  application.  Three  weeks  later  they 
averaged  2%  alive  irrespective  of  what  strength  of  polysul- 


32 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


phide  spray  was  used.  At  the  same  time  the  standard  oil 
emulsion  had  completely  annihilated  the  scales  at  the  first 
count.  At  Clarkston  the  scales  averaged  80%  alive  three 
weeks  after  the  spraying;  50%  six  weeks  after;  and  still  in 
the  neighborhood  of  50%  as  late  as  May  10th  which  was  ten 
weeks  after  the  application.  Again  the  oil  sprays  effect  prac- 
tical extermination  of  the  scales  by  the  end  of  three  weeks. 
It  may  be  noted  that  this  year  a small  percentage  of  the 
scales  survived  even  the  oil  bath  although  not  nearly  so  many 
as  were  alive  in  the  case  of  the  sulphur  sprays.  There  is 
certainly  a much  greater  difference  in  effect  produced  by  a 
single  spray  used  at  Wenatchee  and  Clarkston  than  there  is 
between  the  effect  of  an  excessively  strong  spray  as  compared 
with  an  excessively  weak  spray  used  at  either  place  alone. 

Colorado  Potato  Beetle. 

This  project  is  designed  to  study  any  changes  which  may 
manifest  themselves  in  the  life  history  of  this  insect  as  a re- 
sult in  change  of  environment  and  methods  of  control  of  the 
insect  in  the  Northwest.  The  beetle  has  now  become  acclim- 
ated to  conditions  in  Eastern  Washington  and  is  proving  to  be 
as  destructive  here  as  elsewhere.  It  can  easily  be  kept  m 
check,  however,  by  the  use  of  sprays  of  Paris  green,  arsenate 
of  lead  or  arsenite  of  zinc. 

Endoparasitism. 

Work  has  been  conducted  in  the  study  of  the  endopara- 
sites  of  cabbage  aphis  and  other  insects. 

The  cabbage  aphis  ( Aphis  brassicae)  is  commonly  para- 
sitized by  Aphidius  piceus  and  Xystus  brassicae  and  possibly 
by  Pachyneuron  micans  and  Asaphes  rufipes,  although  the 
two  latter  are  perhaps  hyperparasites.  The  effects  of  these 
two  hymenopterous  parasites  appear  identical.  The  period  of 
incubation  of  the  eggs  of  the  parasite  lasts  but  a few  hours, 
or  a day  oi:  two  at  most,  and  the  larva  developes  rapidly, 
reaching  maturity  in  about  twenty  days.  No  apparent  effects 
are  prouced  upon  the  host  by  the  presence  of  the  egg,  neith- 
er is  there  any  effect  noticed  upon  the  host’s  tissues  by  the 
presence  of  the  larva  until  it  is  about  six  or  seven  days  old. 
At  about  this  time  the  first  effects  of  parasitism  appear.  The 
“Secundare  Dotter”  material  begins  to  show  the  first  signs  of 
degeneration,  which  is  characterized  by  general  disintegra- 
tion and  evacuation.  About  this  time  the  blood  begins  to 
disappear,  and  there  is  a noticeable  evacuation  of  the  adipose 
tissues.  This  degeneration  of  the  “Secundare  Dotter”  cells, 
the  disappearance  of  the  blood  and  the  breaking  of  the  fat 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  83 


cells  continue  until  the  parasite  reaches  an  advanced  stage 
when  it  begins  to  move  about,  destroying  the  remainder  of 
these  degenerating  tissues  and  the  vital  organs  as  well.  The 
host  does  not  seem  to  be  killed  by  any  of  the  degenerating 
processes,  but  rather  by  the  rapid  and  complete  destruction 
of  its  vital  organs. 

The  construction  of  an  insectary  which  will  be  available 
for  use  during  the  coming  fiscal  year  will  greatly  facilitate 
the  work  upon  this  and  other  entomological  projects. 

insects  Affecting  Human  Health. 

Progress  has  been  made  upon  this  project,  especially  in 
connection  with  the  study  of  flies.  Taxonomic  monographs 
of  the  North  American  species  of  Scatopsidae,  Sepsidae  and 
Piohilidae,  flies  which  in  part  breed  in  human  excrement, 
have  been  prepared  and  will  be  published  soon. 

Root  Maggots. 

The  root  maggot  has  proved  to  be  one  of  our  most  seri- 
ous pests,  seriously  interfering  with  the  growing  of  agri- 
cultural crops  belonging  to  the  botanical  family,  Cruciferae, 
and  also  the  onion.  During  the  months  of  April,  May  and 
June,  Mr.  Yothers  was  stationed  at  the  Western  Washington 
Experiment  Station  for  work  upon  this  problem.  Definite 
positive  results  were  not  secured,  the  problem  proving  an  un- 
usually difficult  one.  A large  number  of  experiments  were 
conducted  on  the  control  of  root  maggots  on  cabbage,  cauli- 
flower, onions,  radishes,  turnips,  marrow  cabbage  and  rape. 
As  a result  of  these  tests  the  following  general  conclusions 
have  been  reached: 

1.  Hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  are  lost  annually  in 
Washington  through  the  ravages  of  this  pest. 

2.  The  commercial  market  gardeners  are  subjected  each 
year  to  the  same  severe  loss,  but  the  secret  of  their  compara- 
tively smaller  loss  is  at  least  partly  explained  by  the  follow- 
ing conditions:  Intensive  cultivation  of  the  soil  early  in  the 
spring  before  the  seed  is  planted  destroys  many  of  the  hiber- 
nating pupae.  Large  tracts  of  fields  and  beds  tend  to  reduce 
the  number  of  flies  coming  in  from  the  outside.  The  method 
of  growing  radishes  very  rapidly  tends  to  reduce  the  possi- 
bility of  maggot  infestation. 

3.  We  do  not  know  how  to  control  the  root  maggot. 

4.  The  results  of  our  experiments  are,  for  the  most  part, 
negative  in  character  and  do  not  indicate  that  one  kind  of 
treatment  is  much  more  effective  than  any  other. 


34 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


5.  The  best  methods  yet  devised  for  the  protection  of 
cabbage,  kale,  marrow  cabbage  and  rape  are  as  follows: 

First.  In  Western  Washington  these  plants  can  be  start- 
ed in  the  fall  either  in  the  seed  bed  or  in  the  field  and  in 
either  case  allowed  to  remain  over  winter,  being  transplanted 
to  the  field  in  February  or  March.  This  will  give  them  such  a 
start  that  they  will  be  almost  immune  from  the  maggot  at- 
tack by  the  time  the  maggots  become  destructive,  about  the 
last  of  April.  In  the  case  of  cabbage  this  method  will  give 
marketable  heads  by  the  last  of  May. 

Second.  The  plants  above  mentioned  and  in  addition, 
cauliflower,  can  best  be  protected  by  placing  tarred  paper 
discs  abut  the  stem  close  to  the  ground  just  as  soon  as  they 
are  set  out.  These  discs  are  cheap  and  easy  to  make,  apply 
and  adjust,  and  the  results  are  very  satisfactory. 

Third.  Later  planting  of  such  plants  gives  much  more 
freedom  from  maggot  infestation  than  early  planting,  al- 
though the  practice  will  to  a large  extent  tend  to  reduce  the 
producer’s  profits.  Any  of  the  mentioned  plants  if  trans- 
planted after  the  middle  of  May  will  be  comparatively  little 
affected  by  the  maggots. 

6.  Although  many  of  the  generally  recommended  ovi- 
cides, larvicides,  preventatives,  fertilizers,  and  poison  bait 
treatments  were  tried  on  a large  scale  and  with  many  dupli- 
cations, but  few  positive  or  even  promising  results  were  ob- 
tained. 

7.  In  so  far  as  radishes  and  turnips  are  concerned  none 
of  the  many  generally  recommended,  and  some  original  treat- 
ments, gave  any  satisfactory  results.  Even  where  radishes 
were  treated  according  to  our  own  recommendations,  there 
was  found  90  to  95%  maggot  infestation,  the  same  as  in  the 
check  plots. 

8.  Radishes  for  home  use  should  be  grown  in  screened 
beds. 

9.  Napthalene  flakes  are  unsuitable  because  ineffective 
as  a repellant,  volatile,  expensive  and  injurious  to  the  plants. 

10.  The  “Stinkum"’  as  used  by  Mr.  E.  B.  Stookey  in  his 
experiments  last  year  and  which  seemed  promising  cannot  be 
used  on  account  of  its  injury  to  the  plants. 

11.  Carbolic  acid  emulsion  (3%)  as  generally  recom- 
mended cannot  be  used  with  safety  on  onions. 

12.  Soluble  sulphur  because  seriously  destructive  to 
onions  cannot  be  used  as  a powder. 

13.  The  root  maggots  are  found  in  groups  or  patches  in 
a field  and  may  be  abundant  in  all  sorts  of  treatments  in  one 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  35 


place  while  they  may  be  entirely  absent  in  the  same  treat- 
ments somewhere  else. 

14.  Cabbage,  kale,  cauliflower  and  onions  if  planted  in 
clay  soil  were  practically  free  from  infestation. 

15.  The  most  promising  method  of  controlling  the  root 
maggot  in  general  is  by  the  use  of  the  poison-bait  spray  for 
the  adult  flies. 

Columbian  Ground  Squirrel. 

Work  upon  this  project  has  been  completed  and  the  re- 
sults should  be  ready  for  publication  soon. 

The  objects  for  investigation  were  such  problems  as 
might  throw  light  on  a weakness  in  the  life  cycle,  and  the 
knowledge  gained  thereby  used  towards  the  squirrels’  ex- 
termination. The  questions  for  investigation  were  intimately 
connected  with  the  animal’s  life,  as  follows: 

1.  Activities— daily  and  seasonal. 

2.  Estivation  and  hibernation. 

3.  Breeding  habits. 

4.  Gestation  period. 

5.  Number  of  litters  per  year. 

6.  Food  habits — kind  and  amounts  consumed  at  differ- 
ent seasons  and  during  a given  period. 

7.  Natural  enemies. 

This  work  was  carried  on  both  in  the  field  and  in  a series 
of  yards  and  cabins  especially  constructed  and  maintained  for 
that  purpose.  These  yards  were  enclosures  made  about  old 
wild  squirrel  dens,  thereby  producing  almost  natural  condi- 
tions for  carrying  on  observations.  Two  cabins  were  con- 
structed, one  designed  for  taking  observations  on  squirrels 
during  the  breeding  season  and  the  other  for  similar  study  at 
the  time  of  hibernation. 

As  a result  of  a study  of  the  behavior  of  the  animal,  it 
was  found  that  the  daily  activities  showed  the  decided  diurnal 
condition,  with  a marked  preference  for  sunlight  and 
warmth  and  a corresponding  antipathy  for  cold,  damp  weath- 
er. In  regard  to  seasonal  activities,  it  was  shown,  during  five 
years  observations,  that  there  was  a considerable  regularity, 
but  a slight  variation  was  noticed  in  regard  to  the  going  into 
estivation,  due  to  the  condition  of  the  food  plants  as  affected 
by  a wet  or  dry  season. 

The  studies  in  regard  to  estivation  and  hibernation  were 
carried  on  both  in  the  wild  and  in  the  hibernation  cellars.  A 
great  amount  of  time  and  effort  was  spent  in  gaining  the 
facts  of  wild  hibernation,  which  findings  were  abundantly 


FIG.  V.  Columbian  Ground  Squirrels  at  time  of  birth. 


FIG.  VI.  The  same  squirrels  after  29  days  of  development. 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  37 

supported  by  the  observations  made  in  the  yards.  Among 
other  things  learned  was  the  duration  of  these  periods,  with 
the  causes  of  early  estivation,  and  the  amount  and  the  con- 
dition of  the  nutrition  necessary  to  sustain  the  life  of  the 
animal  during  this  period.  Careful  measurements  and  data 
were  taken  of  the  hibernation  den. 

It  was  learned  through  field  and  yard  observations,  that 
breeding  commenced  very  early  after  appearance  from  hiber- 
nation, and  that  the  young  were  born  and  retained  in  the 
brood  nests  until  partially  grown  and  active,  though  the  time 
thus  consumed  was  remarkably  short.  In  the  study  of  this 
phase  of  the  life  history  much  information  was  secured 
relative  to  the  dens  inhabited  by  the  animals  during  the 
breeding  season  and  through  the  subsequent  summer.  The 
yards  offered  excellent  opportunity  for  the  study  of  the  de- 
velopment of  the  young,  making  possible  the  securing  of 
weights,  photographs  and  color  notations. 

The  only  certain  means  of  ascertaining  the  gestation  per- 
iod was  by  having  the  animals  under  absolute  control.  This 
information  was  obtained  in  the  yards,  where  squirrels,  brand- 
ed and  of  known  sex,  were  allowed  to  breed,  subsequent  data 
giving  this  period  as  about  twenty-four  days. 

It  has  been  pretty  generally  believed  by  persons  who 
have  casually  observed  the  squirrels,  that  they  breed  more 
than  once  in  the  year,  some  going  so  far  as  to  say  that  the 
young  females  of  the  first  brood  breed  during  the  season  of 
their  birth.  The  data  secured  by  this  investigation  showed 
beyond  doubt  that  there  was  but  one  brood  per  year,  and 
that  for  this  locality  the  litter  appeared  above  the  surface 
about  the  first  to  the  tenth  of  May. 

The  work  of  previous  investigators  was  substantiated  in 
regard  to  the  matter  of  food,  the  animal  here  as  elsewhere 
showing  a preference  for  growing  vegetation.  They  were 
found  to  be  carnivorous  and  cannibalistic.  Their  endeavor  to 
secure  the  necessary  amount  of  food  from  growing  grains  and 
alfalfa  causes  great  damage,  and  failure  to  find  food  owing  to 
the  midsummer  drought  sends  them  into  estivation,  for  this 
species  does  not  drink  water  normally.  They  of  necessity  are 
abundant  feeders — a female  under  observation  consumed  33% 
of  her  weight  in  one  day. 

These  squirrels  have  shown  a desire  for  flesh,  other  than 
that  noticed  above,  for  the  remains  of  mice,  pocket  gophers 
and  birds  are  often  observed  at  the  entrance  of  their  bur- 
rows. In  turn  the  squirrel  dens  are  the  the  object  of  investi- 
gation by  badgers,  which  animals  are  perhaps  its  most  persist- 


38 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


ent  enemy.  Not  only  is  the  work  of  the  badger  noticed  during 
the  summer  season,  but  far  into  the  winter  as  well,  at  such 
a time  as  the  squirrels  are  in  a helpless  state  of  inactivity. 

In  regard  to  control,  the  fact  has  impressed  itself  upon  the 
mind  of  the  investigator  more  and  more  as  the  observations 
were  made,  that  the  one  vital  time  to  strike  is  at  the  time  of 
coming  from  hibernation.  Whatever  means  may  be  employed, 
if  carried  on  persistently  and  thoroughly  at  this  season  will 
surely  be  accompanied  by  the  most  satisfactory  resuiis 

DIVISION  OF  HORTICULTURE. 

Ornamental  Shrubs  and  Vines. 

Shade  and  Ornamental  Trees. 

These  two  projects  have  been  continued  as  matters  of 
record.  Material  of  interest  and  value  has  been  developed  on 
the  grounds  of  the  College  and  the  record  of  this  is  a valuable 
contribution  to  the  knowledge  of  the  trees  and  plants  adapt- 
ed to  this  locality.  Information  along  this  same  line  is  ob- 
tained in  various  ways  from  the  different  parts  of  the  state 
and  has  been  made  available  for  the  state  at  large. 

Orchard  Pollination. 

The  work  on  this  project  was  continued  during  the  year 
and  the  results  are  ready  for  publication.  The  results  of  the 
work  indicate  a large  degree'  of  self  sterility.  However,  va- 
rieties are  so  well  distributed  in  the  different  localities  that 
the  normal  agents  of  pollination  carry  out  their  work  to  a 
satisfactory  degree.  Trouble  in  the  setting  of  cherry  fruit 
will  make  it  necessary  to  continue  pollination  studies  with 
this  fruit. 

Raspberry  Hybrids. 

The  project  deals  with  fundamental  problems  in  genetics 
and  will  require  several  years  to  obtain  data  sufficient  for 
generalizations.  Progress  is  being  made  in  the  work. 

Winter  Desiccation  of  Fruit  Trees. 

Progress  has  been  made  in  the  investigation  of  this  prob- 
lem. The  season’s  work  was  largely  confined  to  the  treat- 
ment of  soils  with  alkali  and  in  making  alkali  tests  of  soils  in 
which  rosette  appeared  on  trees.  This  trouble  as  it  first  mani- 
fested itself  in  the  spring  of  this  year  seemed  to  be  to  a con- 
siderable extent  independent  of  excessive  alkali  soil.  However, 
no  sample  has  been  found  in  which  the  soil  was  not  distinctly 
alkaline.  An  effort  was  made  to  learn  something  of  the  area 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  39 

in  which  this  trouble  exists,  and  all  of  the  information  avail- 
able indicates  that  it  exists  only  in  areas  in  which  the  humus 
content  of  the  soil  is  very  low.  Our  previous  tests  indicate 
that  humus  content  direct,  however,  is  not  a controlling  fac- 
tor. This  year  the  alkali  treatment  of  soil  is  being  continued 
with  further  study  upon  soil  composition. 

A large  number  of  grafts  were  set  in  which  affected  wood 
was  set  in  vigorous,  rapid-growing  trees.  The  growth  of  the 
new  twigs  from  these  grafts  is  in  every  case  normal.  No  ro- 
sette appears  on  a single  twig  in  the  entire  lot.  A large  num- 
ber of  whip  grafts  were  made  during  the  winter,  but  very 
few  of  them  made  any  start.  The  few  that  did,  show  no  di- 
rect evidence  of  rosette  or  winter  desiccation. 

Soil  Moisture  and  Keeping  Quality  of  Apples. 

The  work  done  on  this  proiect  was  continued  with  fruit 
grown  in  the  Yakima  valley.  Valuable  data  were  obtained. 
The  results  indicate  that  excessive  watering  is  a harmful 
factor  in  developing  apples  with  good  keeping  quality.  This 
one  factor,  however,  is  evidently  correlated  with  several  oth- 
ers and  up  to  date  the  work  has  been  done  under  such  con- 
ditions that  it  is  not  possible  to  obtain  desirable  data  settling 
the  question  raised  in  this  respect.  The  results  indicate  that 
excessive  thinning  and  the  size  of  the  fruit  developed  is  prob- 
ably as  great  a factor  as  the  soil  moisture  supply  direct  upon 
keeping  qualities.  The  temperature  through  which  the  fruit 
rnatures  is  a closely  related  factor.  The  kind  of  soil  and  the 
kind  of  cron  fintercron  or  cover  crop)  growing  on  the  soil 
are  also  modifving  factors,  but  no  effort  will  be  made  to  seg- 
regate these  factors  until  the  work  on  the  original  question 
has  progressed  to  a more  satisfactory  degree.  Apples  kept 
in  cold  storap^e  have  shown  greater  fluctuation  in  storage 
quality  according  to  size  than  any  other  factor  directly  re- 
corded in  this  experiment. 

Orchard  Cover  Crops. 

Examination  this  year  showed  that  in  early  spring  the 
roots  of  the  rye  crop  had  reached  the  extreme  depth  of  107  to 
109  inches.  The  work  of  the  year  indicates  that  the  cereal 
crops  such  as  wheat  and  rye  have  a greater  value  as  orchard 
coyer  crops  than  has  been  accorded  to  them  in  the  past.  Suf- 
ficient data  have  not  been  developed  to  justify  conclusions. 

Renovation  of  Prune  Orchards  in  Clarke  County. 

The  work  of  this  project  is  proceeding  along  the  line  that 
was  laid  down  in  the  twenty-fourth  annual  report.  The  work 


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WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  41 

promises  to  develop  knowledge  that  will  be  of  great  value  to 
the  prune  growers  in  certain  sections  of  Clarke  county,  ine 
growth  of  the  trees  on  certain  fertilized  plots  this  spring 
seemed  to  indicate  that  the  nitrogen  fertilizers  are  the  ones 
most  definitely  needed  in  the  light  soils  of  that  district. 

Variety  Tests  of  Vegetables. 

In  the  spring  of  1914  work  was  commenced  upon  variety 
testing  of  potatoes  and  is  being  conducted  with  the  utmost 
thoroughness  for  the  purpose  of  carefully  classifying  and  de- 
veloping satisfactory  descriptive  notes  of  the  different  va- 
rieties in  order  to  make  descriptions  thorough  enough  to  be 
of  value  in  identifying  certain  types;  also  for  ascertaining  the 
varieties  most  adaptable  to  this  state  and  the  degree  to  which 
they  are  acceptable  in  the  market.  There  are  many  names 
applied  to  groups  or  classes  of  varieties  which  cannot  be  dis- 
tinguished and  there  are  several  misleading  synonyms  being 
used  by  the  trade. 

Control  of  Pear  Blight. 

Work  on  this  project  was  done  during  July  and  part  of 
August.  Careful  root  pruning  and  thorough,  deep  plowing, 
and  the  planting  of  cover  crops  around  the  trees  after  the 
blight  was  well  established  seemed  to  have  very  little  effect 
in  checking  the  growth  of  the  tree  sufficiently  to  check  or 
stop  the  spreading  of  blight.  Top  pruning,  however,  seemed 
to  definitely  continue  the  succulent  character  of  growth  and 
make  possible  the  rapid  spread  of  the  disease.  No  blight  was 
found  in  an  active,  developing  state  on  any  twig  or  branch 
which  had  been  checked  in  grov/th  sufficiently  to  form  a 
terminal  bud,  and  where  blighted  areas  were  discovered  they 
seemed  to  stop  their  spread  as  soon  as  the  trees  ripened  to  a 
sufficient  extent  to  form  a terminal  bud.  This  project  has 
been  discontinued. 

DIVISION  OF  IRRIGATION  ENGINEERING. 

No  regular  projects  of  an  investigational  nature  have 
been  conducted  in  the  Division  during  the  year.  However, 
Professor  Waller  has  given  valuable  assistance  to  farmers  in 
the  organization  and  plans  for  irrigation  and  drainage  work 
in  various  parts  of  the  state.  The  Station  is  sorely  in  need  of 
funds  for  properly  equipping  for  this  line  of  work. 


42 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


DIVISION  OF  VETERINARY  SCIENCE. 

The  Division  has  three  projects  under  investigation: 
Pernicious  Anemia  in  Horses. 

Because  of  the  scarcity  of  diseased  animals,  practically 
nothing  has  been  done  during  the  past  year  in  the  investiga- 
tion of  equine  pernicious  anemia. 

Red  Water  (Hematuria)  in  Cattle. 

During  the  previous  year,  the  experiment  was  tried  of 
sending  free  medicine  to  owners  of  red-water  cows.  The  prac- 
tice was  continued  during  the  fiscal  year  1914-15,  medicine 
and  directions  for  treatment  being  sent  to  all  who  had  made 
application  for  the  same. 

Up  to  the  present  time  37  cases  of  red  water  have  been 
treated  in  this  manner.  25  cases  were  treated  by  the  adminis- 
tration of  8 grams  of  salol  twice  daily  over  a period  of  30  days, 
the  other  12  cases  were  given  a combination  of  8 grams  of 
formin  and  12  grams  of  benzoic  acid  twice  daily  over  a period 
of  30  days. 

Careful  examination  of  the  records  of  all  these  cases  re- 
veals the  fact  that  not  one  case  has  permanently  recovered 
from  the  disease.  Some  of  the  owners  thought  that  the 
treatment  gave  temporary  relief  while  others  are  of  the  opin- 
ion that  it  was  of  no  benefit  whatever. 

In  view  of  the  fact  that  the  results  thus  obtained  are 
rather  unsatisfactory,  the  work  along  this  line  will  probably 
be  discontinued. 

A new  project,  dealing  with  an  animal  disease  more  or 
less  unknown  to  science,  has  been  formulated  and  work  com- 
menced upon  the  same.  The  disease  in  question  is  one  which 
affects  horses,  cattle,  hogs,  sheep,  goats,  dogs,  chickens,  and 
possibly  deer  and  human  beings,  and  apparently  is  endemic  to 
the  eastern  slope  of  the  Cascade  mountains,  primarily  in  the 
counties  of  Okanogan.  Chelan,  Kittitas,  Yakima  and  Benton. 

The  disease  manifests  itself  more  particularly  in  the 
young,  resulting  in  large  numbers  being  born  weak  or  de- 
fective in  various  wavs,  some  (pigs)  devoid  of  hair,  others 
(colts)  are  weak  and  unable  to  stand,  others  (calves  and 
goats)  with  enlarged  thyroid  glands  (big  neck).  (See  Figs. 
TX.,  X.  and  XL).  Most  of  these  defective  young  die  within  a 
very  few  hours  or  a few  days  after  birth. 

The  disease  has  been  known  more  or  less  for  a number  of 
years  but  seemingly  has  become  more  troublesome  during  the 
last  year  or  two.  Possibly  it  is  more  noticeable  because  of 


FIG.  XL  Still  born  “big  neck”  calf. 


44 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


the  larger  amount  of  live  stock  grown  in  the  district.  It  is 
reported  to  have  been  known  by  the  Indians  for  upwards  of  a 
century. 

The  cause  of  the  disease  is  unknown  and  no  remedy  has 
been  found  which  would  in  any  definite  manner  ameliorate 
conditions  with  reference  to  the  disease. 

During  June  of  this  year,  Dr.  Kalkus,  Veterinarian  of  the 
Experiment  Station,  in  company  wih  Dr.  Carl  TenBroek  of 
the  Rockefeller  Institute  for  Medical  Research  in  Animal  Dis- 
eases, spent  several  weeks  in  the  district  studying  the  distri- 
bution and  amount  of  the  trouble,  making  a careful  re- 
port upon  the  same.  This  report  is  on  file  in  the  office 
of  the  Director  and  in  the  archives  of  the  Rockefeller 
Institute.  The  Station  is  indebted  to  the  Rockefeller  Insti- 
tute for  Medical  Research,  and  especially  to  Director  Theo- 
bold  Smith,  for  assistance  in  making  this  preliminary  investi- 
gation. 

As  a result  of  the  investigation  in  question,  arrangements 
have  been  made  for  actively  prosecuting  careful  and  detailed 
investigations  upon  the  disease  with  a view  to,  first,  ascer- 
taining its  cause,  and  second,  remedying  the  same. 

SPECIAL. 

Separator  Fires. 

Early  in  July  of  the  fiscal  year  1914-15  there  occurred  in 
Eastern  Washington,  Northern  Idaho  and  Eastern  Oregon  a 
large  number  of  fires  in  threshing  separators.  These  fires 
started  always  inside  the  separator  with  a suddenness  that 
caused  them  to  be  frequently  characterized  as  explosions.  A 
great  variety  of  explanations  were  offered  as  to  the  cause  of 
the  fires,  the  most  popular  of  which  seemed  to  be  incendiar- 
ism. The  fires  increased  in  severity  and  number  for  the  first 
two  or  three  weeks  of  the  threshing  season,  being  the  most 
abundant  in  Whitman  county  and  adjacent  territory.  It  is 
very  probable  that  during  the  season  over  three  hundred 
threshing  separators  we^e  thus  destroyed.  The  season  was 
an  unusually  dry  one,  therefore  a fire  once  started  usually  was 
not  controlled  until  the  entire  separator  and  often  much  of 
the  surrounding  grain  and  straw  was  destroyed. 

At  the  outbreak  of  the  trouble  six  members  of  the  Ex- 
periment Station  staff  were  detailed  to  investigate  the 
trouble.  Competent  detectives  were  employed  to  investigate 
the  theory  of  incendiarism.  However,  no  evidence  whatso- 
ever could  be  obtained  that  the  fires  were  in  any  way  of  an 
incendiary  character.  Approximately  three  weeks  of  invest!- 


FIG.  XII.  A threshing  outfit  on  fire  from  smut  explosion.  Probably  20  to  25'7(  smut  in  the  wheat. 


46 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


o-atlon  revealed  the  fact  that  the  fires  were  due  to  a combin- 
ation of  unusually  dry  conditions  resulting  in  a large  amount 
of  organic  dust  and  an  unusual  amount  of  static  electricity 
generated  by  the  moving  machinery,  together  with  the  large 
amount  of  smut  prevalent  during  the  season,  the  smut  prob- 
ably being  the  chief  factor  in  the  difficulty.  It  was  found 
that  unusually  large  electric  sparks  could  be  drawn  from  al- 
most any  portion  of  the  moving  machine.  These  served  to  ig- 
nite the  mixtures  of  smut,  dust  and  air  within  the  separator 
with  the  resulting  conflagrations.  A summary  of  the  investi- 
gations with  suggestions  for  remedying  the  trouble  has  been 
published  in  General  Bulletin  No.  117. 

COOPERATIVE  WORK. 

The  Experiment  Station,  during  the  year,  has  conducted 
the  usual  amount  of  cooperative  work  and  in  some  cases  con- 
siderably increased  the  amount  over  previous  years. 

Probably  the  most  important  cooperating  agency  during 
the  year  has  been  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development.  As  the 
result  of  resident  agriculturists  in  each  of  ten  counties  of 
the  state  during  the  year  it  has  been  possible  to  place  the  re- 
sults of  the  Experiment  Station  investigations  directly  in  the 
hands  of  the  farmers  and  in  such  a way  that  they  can  be 
most  economically  put  into  practice.  The  County  Agricultur- 
ist is  intimately  associated  with  the  agricultural  problems  of 
his  county.  He  reacts  in  a way  upon  the  Experiment  Sta- 
tion, bringing  the  Experiment  Station  closely  in  touch  with 
the  problems  upon  which  investigation  is  needed  in  the  state. 
This  relationship,  in  a state  with  as  great  diversity  as  has  the 
State  of  Washington,  where  there  are  scarcely  any  two  coun- 
ties with  similar  agricultural  problems,  is  of  enormous  ad- 
vantage to  the  Station,  and  the  close  relationship  of  these  two 
state  departments  will  do  much  toward  the  solution  of  the  ag- 
ricultural problems  of  the  state.  This  is  especially  true  of 
the  dry  land  districts. 

The  Station  has  just  established  a branch  station  at  Lind 
and  a sub-branch  at  Waterville  for  the  purpose  of  conducting 
dry  land  investigations  and  experiments.  The  sphere  of  ac- 
tivity of  this  Station  is  largely  the  upper  Columbia  River  val- 
ley, esi)ecially  the  region  known  as  the  Big  Bend  disrict.  Six 
of  the  counties  in  this  dry  belt  are  provided  with  resident 
agriculturists  in  the  Bureau  of  Farm  Development.  They  are 
working  in  the  closest  cooperation  with  those  in  charge  of  the 
dry  land  station  and  thus  place  at  the  disposal  of  the  agri- 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  47 


cultural  interests  of  the  state  a most  efficient  working  force 
for  agriculural  betterment. 

The  various  divisions  of  the  Experiment  Station  have 
conducted  cooperative  work  with  something  over  1300  farm- 
ers during  the  year. 

The  State  Department  of  Agriculture  has  been  a valuable 
cooperator  from  a number  of  standpoints,  especially  in  horti- 
cultural lines,  the  local  horticultural  inspectors  giving  assist- 
ance in  spraying  experiments  and  demonstrations  and  in  the 
dissemination  of  agricultural  information  from  the  Station. 
Between  the  Station  and  the  State  Department  the  utmost 
harmony  prevails  in  an  effort  to  better  the  general  agricul- 
tural conditions  of  the  state. 

The  Rockefeller  Institute  for  Medical  Research  has  coop- 
erated in  the  investigation  of  animal  diseases. 

The  cooperation  with  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture with  the  purpose  of  determining  the  effect  of  varying 
conditions  of  climate  and  soil  upon  the  chemical  condition  of 
wheat  has  been  continued.  The  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry  has 
also  cooperated  to  the  extent  of  $300  per  year  on  the  salary 
of  a pathologist  in  smut  investigations. 

The  Station  has  contributed  greatly  to  the  agricultural 
interests  of  the  state  by  the  introduction  of  new  and  improv- 
ed varieties  of  plants  through  the  cooperation  of  the  Office  of 
P’oreign  Seed  and  Plant  Introduction  of  the  U.  S.  Department 
of  Agriculture. 

The  various  departments  of  the  College  have  also  coop- 
erated in  an  efficient  manner  with  the  work  of  the  Station. 
Especial  mention  should  be  made  of  the  work  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Botany  in  this  connection,  which  carried  on  investi- 
gations on  range  plants  and  range  problems,  results  of  which 
are  published  in  General  Bulletin  No.  122.  During  the  latter 
half  of  the  year,  Dr.  G.  H.  Jensen,  Assistant  Professor  of 
Plant  Physiology  in  the  Department  of  Botany,  rendered  val- 
uable assistance  in  investip*ations  in  connection  with  the  pro- 
gressive development  of  the  wheat  kernel,  results  of  which 
will  shortly  be  published.  The  Department  of  Botany  has  al- 
so rendered  valuable  assistance  in  the  testing  of  seeds  used  in 
the  various  lines  of  agricultural  work,  and  in  the  identifica- 
tion of  seeds,  weeds  and  other  plants. 

The  Department  of  Forestry  has  cooperated  in  a very  val- 
uable manner  in  tree  planting  work  carried  on  in  the  dry  belt. 


48 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


DISSEMINATION  OF  INFORMATION. 

Efforts  Piave  been  made  during  the  year  to  render  the 
work  of  the  Experiment  Station  as  practical  as  possible  by  ef- 
fectively disseminating  information  in  its  possession  in  such 
a way  as  will  be  of  use  to  the  citizens  of  the  state.  There 
have  been  published  by  the  Station,  during  the  year,  twenty- 
one  popular,  forty-nine  press  and  nine  technical  bulletins, 
aggregating  423  pages. 

Members  of  the  Station  staff  have  written  over  31,000 
personal  letters  in  reply  to  inquiries,  chiefly  of  an  agricultural 
nature.  Many  of  these  letters  have  been  of  considerable 
length  and  have  gone  into  great  detail  to  explain  various  ag- 
ricultural practices  to  the  farmers. 

One  of  the  most  efficient  aids  in  the  dissemination  of  the 
work  of  the  Station  has  been  the  press  of  the  state.  During 
the  year  there  have  been  issued  49  press  bulletins  upon  the 
following  topics: 

106 —  Apple  Pollination  in  the  Spokane  Valley. 

107 —  Prevent  Winter  Injury  to  Fruit  Trees. 

108 —  Preparing  Fruit  Exhibits. 

109 —  Pear  Blight. 

110 —  The  Woolly  Aphid  of  the  Apple. 

111 —  Don’t  Summer  Prune  Raspberries. 

112 —  Lemons  for  Grasshoppers. 

113 —  Smut. 

114 —  Selecting  and  Storing  Seed  Corn. 

115 —  Fall  Plowing. 

116 —  Fruit  for  Identification. 

117 —  Sudan  Grass. 

118 —  Sirup  from  Apple  Cider. 

119 —  Store  Good  Potatoes. 

120^ — The  Farm  Inventory. 

121 —  Dairy  Stock  Should  be  Dehorned. 

122 —  The  Rosy  Apple  Aphis  (Aphis  sorbi). 

123 —  Home-made  Apple  Vinegar. 

124—  Protecting  Trees  from  Mice. 

125 —  Potato  Day  at  Brewster  High  School. 

126 —  Curing  Smoked  Meats. 

127 —  Who  Has  Grain  Seed  for  Sale? 

128 —  Seed  Corn  for  Distribution. 

129 —  How  to  Prepare  a Hot  Bed. 

130 —  Two  Insects  Injurious  to  Clover. 

131 —  Preparation  of  Seed  Bed  for  Corn. 

132 —  Sulphur  Soda  Sprays. 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  49 

133 —  The  Brood  Sow. 

134 —  The  Pregnant  Mare. 

135 —  Soft  Shelled  Eggs. 

136 —  Two-fold  Use  for  the  Manure  Spreader. 

137 —  Feeding  Brooder  Chicks. 

138 —  Attracting  Birds. 

139 —  The  Ox  Warble  Fly. 

140 —  Cheat. 

141 —  Winter  Injury  to  Fruit  Trees. 

142 —  The  Downy  Mildew  of  Alfalfa. 

143 —  Bacilliary  White  Diarrhea  of  Chicks. 

144 —  A Common  Cause  of  Chick  Losses. 

145 —  When  to  Spray  for  Codling  Moth. 

146 —  Leg  Weakness  in  Chicks. 

147 —  The  Pear  Leaf  Blister  Mite. 

148 —  The  Colorado  Potato  Beetle. 

149 —  Proper  Method  of  Stewing  Meats. 

150 —  Droopy  Winged  Chicks. 

151 —  Use  the  Garden  Hose  on  Insects. 

152 —  Fire  Protection  for  Threshing  Separators. 

153 —  California  Peach  Blight. 

154 —  Powdery  Mildew  of  the  Apple. 

PUBLICATIONS. 

There  have  been  issued  from  the  Experiment  Station 
during  the  year  nine  technical  and  twenty-one  popular  bulle- 
tins. The  following  are  brief  summaries  indicating  the  scope 
and  character  of  the  bulletins  in  question: 

GENERAL  (TECHNICAL)  BULLETINS. 

No.  114.  Tuberculosis,  A Report  of  the  Results  of  the 
Continued  Injections  of  Tuberculin  Upon  Tubercular  Cattle, 
by  S.  B.  Nelson.  The  bulletin  is  a summary  of  the  results  of 
a number  of  years  of  investigations  carried  on  by  the  Veter- 
inary Division  of  the  Station  and  bearing  upon  the  general 
problems  of  bovine  tuberculosis.  The  results  of  the  investi- 
gation indicate: 

1.  That  the  injection  into  tubercular  cattle  of  large 
monthly  or  small  weekly  doses  of  tuberculin  does  not  appar- 
ently have  therapeutic  value. 

2.  That  the  injection  of  constantly  increased  daily  or 
weekly  doses  of  tuberculin  apparently  does  have  therapeutic 
value. 

3.  That  the  evening  temperature  is  usually  higher  than 
the  morning  temperature  in  tubercular  cows. 


50 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


4.  That  the  oftener  tuberculin  injections  are  made  into 
tubercular  cattle,  the  sooner  the  temperature  reaction  begins 
and  the  sooner  the  zenith  is  reached. 

No.  115.  Studies  on  the  Relation  of  Certain  Species  of 
Fusarium  to  the  Tomato  Blight  of  the  Pacific  Northwest,  by 
H.  B.  Humphrey.  The  bulletin  is  the  result  of  investigations 
conducted  by  the  author,  N.  R.  Hunt,  and  D.  C.  George  on  the 
cause  and  control  of  tomato  blight.  It  discusses  the  distribu- 
tion and  symptoms  of  the  blight  and  records  in  detail  the 
results  of  field  observations  and  greenhouse  studies,  innocula- 
tion  experiments,  and  cultural  studies  of  the  Fusarium 

orthoceras  and  i^.  oxysporum,  both  of  which  species  of  fungi 
were  studied  more  or  less  in  detail.  Experiments  with  the 
view  to  controlling  the  blight  by  various  cultural  practices 
were  also  carried,  on.  It  is  maintained  that  the  two  species 
of  the  fungus,  Fusarium,  are  the  causative  organisms  of  the 
disease.  See  page  23  of  this  report. 

No.  116.  The  Quantitative  Determinations  of  Mono,  Di, 
and  Tri  Calcium  Phosphates  and  Their  Application,  by  Geo.  A. 
Olson.  This  is  a bulletin  dealing  with  technical  methods  in 
certain  phases  of  agricultural  chemistry.  The  method  of  the 
use  of  ammonium  citrate  for  the  determination  of  the  amount 
of  available  phosphoric  acid  in  fertilizers  is  called  into  ques- 
tion and  the  results  of  this  method  are  discussed  in  detail. 
The  solubility  of  tricalcium  phosphate  and  of  phosphate  fer- 
tilizer in  ammonium  citrate  and  citric  acid  is  discussed.  At- 
tention is  called  to  the  fact  that  the  older  methods  in  ques- 
tion are  purely  empirical  and  do  not  serve  to  separate  the  tri 
from  the  dicalcium  phosphates.  It  is  suggested  that  the  prob- 
lem can  be  attacked  in  a scientific  manner  bv  dissolving  the 
substances  in  question  in  nitric  acid  and  nrecipitating  by  am- 
monium hydroxide,  it  then  being  possible  to  differentiate 
the  different  forms  of  phosphate.  Attention  is  called  to  the 
fact  that  nothing  is  gained  by  apnlying  superphosphate  or  re- 
verted phosphoric  acid  to  the  soil. 

No.  117.  Report  on  Fires  Occurring  in  Threshing  Sepa- 
rators in  Eastern  Washington  Durinp'  the  Summer  of  1914,  by 
Ira  D.  Cardiff,  0.  L.  Waller,  H.  V.  Carnenter,  Geo.  A.  Olson, 
E G.  Schafer  and  A.  L.  Sherman.  The  bulletin  is  a discussion 
of  the  occurrence  of  fires  in  threshing  separators,  and  goes 
into  the  possible  causes  of  these  fires  in  detail.  It  is  conclud- 
ed that  the  fires  are  caused  by  a combination  of  conditions, 
involving  excessive  quantities  of  smut  and  unusually  dry  con- 
ditions at  the  harvest  time — the  latter  resulting  in  increased 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  51 


amount  of  organic  dust  and  an  increased  amount  of  static 
electricity  formed  by  the  moving  machinery. 

The  bulletin  records  the  results  of  investigations  upon 
the  percent  of  moisture  in  grain  and  smut  for  the  year  in 
question  and  for  previous  years,  the  flashing  tests  of  oils  and 
greases  used  in  separators,  the  influence  of  stacking  grain 
upon  its  combustibility  and  quality,  the  effect  on  the  grain  of 
the  injection  of  steam  into  the  cylinder  of  the  machine,  the 
composition  of  smut  and  the  explosibility  of  pure  smut.  Field 
investigations  were  also  conducted  for  the  purpose  of  deter- 
mining the  number,  location,  date,  time  of  day,  place  in  ma- 
chine of  smut  fires  and  explosions.  Data  were  also  collected 
with  leference  to  the  amount  of  damage,  make  of  separator, 
speed  of  machine,  power  used,  and  variety  of  wheat  threshed, 
as  well  as  devices  for  combating  fires.  The  question  of  incen- 
diarism is  dicussed  with  the  conclusion  that  there  exists  no 
evidence  of  incendiarism.  Remedial  suggestions  are  offered 
for  control  and  prevention  of  fires  by  grounding  of  machinery 
for  the  purpose  of  conducting  off  the  static  electricty,  the  use 
of  fire  paints  to  retard  the  spread  of  the  fire  to  other  por- 
tions of  the  machine,  the  equipment  of  the  separator  with 
sprinkling  devices  which  can  work  automatically  or  be  turned 
on  very  quickly,  and  other  common  sense  precautions  against 
fire  or  spread  of  fire. 

No.  118.  Twenty-Fourth  Annual  Report,  For  the  Year 
Ending  June,  30,  1914,  by  the  Director.  This  is  a summary  of 
the  work  including  a financial  statement  of  the  Experiment 
Station  for  the  fiscal  year  1913-14. 

No.  119.  First  Annual  Report,  Department  of  Dry  Land 
Demonstration  and  Experiment,  For  the  Year  Ending  Decem- 
ber 31,  1914,  by  the  Director.  The  bulletin  records  the  re- 
sults of  a survey  of  the  dry  land  districts  of  Adams,  Franklin, 
Grant,  Douglas,  Benton  and  Walla  Walla  Counties,  together 
with  suggestions  for  the  solution  of  the  dry  land  problem  of 
these  counties.  Plans  for  future  work  of  the  department  are 
outlined  in  detail  and  the  needs  of  the  dry  belt  discussed.  A 
financial  report  is  included. 

No.  120.  First  Annual  Report,  Bureau  of  Farm  Develop- 
ment, For  the  Year  Ending  December  31,  1914,  by  the  Direc- 
tor. This  bulletin  discusses  the  organization  of  the  Bureau 
and  its  relation  to  the  Experiment  Station.  The  results  of 
work  by  the  agriculturists  of  Adams,  Douglas,  Benton,  Oka- 
nogan, Spokane,  Wahkiakum,  and  Walla  Walla  Counties  are 
given  in  considerable  detail.  The  bulletin  contains  a tabu- 


52 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


lated  summary  of  the  work  of  the  county  agriculturists  in 
these  counties  and  also  a statement  of  farm  management 
demonstrations  and  boys’  and  girls’  club  work  carried  on  in 
cooperation  with  the  county  agriculturists.  The  needs  of  the 
Bureau  and  the  agricultural  outlook  of  the  state  are  discuss- 
ed. A financial  statement  and  a copy  of  the  law  creating  the 
Bureau  are  included. 

No.  121.  Washington  Wheats,  by  E.  G.  Schafer  and  E.  F. 
Gaines.  The  bulletin  is  the  result  of  several  years  of  work  in 
the  Farm  Crops  Division  in  the  testing  of  various  varieties  of 
wheat  suitable  to  the  State  of  Washington.  The  necessity  for 
comparative  field  experiments  for  determining  the  most 
profitable  varieties  is  discussed,  and  thirteen  of  the  common 
varieties  of  wheat  are  described  in  detail,  their  diagnostic 
characters  being  also  tabulated  and  to  some  extent  illustrat- 
ed. Tables  are  given  to  illustrate  the  relative  value  from  the 
standpoint  of  flour,  percent  of  wet  gluten,  dry  gluten,  and  nit- 
rogen, as  well  as  an  average  of  these  qualities.  During  the 
period  in  question  Hybrid  128  excelled  all  others  both  in  yield 
and  quality,  with  Hybrid  143  a close  second. 

No.  122.  A Study  of  Grazing  Conditions  in  the  Wenaha 
National  Forest,  by  H.  T.  Darlington,  records  the  results  of 
range  investigations  as  applied  especially  to  the  Blue  Moun- 
tain region  of  Southeastern  Washington.  The  general  condi- 
tions of  the  native  plants  available  for  range  food  in  the  We- 
naha  National  Forest  is  discussed  and  the  different  types  of 
grazing  areas  explained  from  a biological  standpoint.  Obser- 
vations upon  the  plants  most  used  by  the  sheep  are  recorded 
and  suggestions  are  offered  for  conserving  and  improving  the 
range.  It  is  found  that  the  principal  forage  plants  are  peren- 
nial, consisting  principally  of  shrubs.  On  account  of  the  long 
winters  it  is  found  that  there  is  little  deterioration  of  the 
grazing  areas  in  question.  The  full  capacity  of  the  range  is 
not  being  utilized  on  account  of  the  lack  of- roads  and  trails. 
The  bulletin  is  of  botanical  as  well  as  agricultural  interest. 

POPULAR  BULLETINS. 

No.  71.  Preparation  of  Fruit  Exhibits,  by  R.  J.  Barnett. 
The  bulletin  is  the  result  of  frequent  inquiry  in  regard  to  the 
methods  of  preparation  of  fruit  for  exhibition  purposes.  It 
discusses  the  reason  for  exhibiting  fruits  and  sets  forth  var- 
ious lines  of  information  which  the  exhibitor  should  have 
with  reference  to  premium  lists  and  rules;  how  to  prepare  an 
exhibit;  where  and  how  to  select  fruit;  together  with  a dis- 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  63 


cussion  of  the  characteristics  of  show  fruit  from  the  stand- 
point of  form,  size,  color,  blemishes,  uniformity  and  quality. 
Directions  are  also  given  for  packing  the  various  kinds  of 
pack  from  the  standpoint  of  keeping  quality  and  attractive- 
ness. Methods  of  transportation  of  show  fruit  are  explained, 
and,  for  the  beneht  of  judges,  the  questions  of  nomenclature, 
score  cards,  etc.,  are  discussed.  The  bulletin  is  illustrated. 

No.  72.  Handling  Apples  for  Storage,  by  W.  J.  Young. 
The  bulletin  discusses  the  various  kinds  of  storage  conditions 
which  effect  the  keeping  quality  of  fruit,  together  with  de- 
tailed directions  for  picking,  packing,  grading  and  cooling 
fruit  and  the  relation  of  the  same  to  storage.  It  also  contains 
descriptions  of  twenty-one  of  the  more  common  varieties  of 
apples,  the  descriptions  being  based  upon  the  characters  with 
reference  to  storage. 

No.  73.  Stinking  Smut  in  Wheat,  by  H.  M.  Woolman. 
This  bulletin  is  a non-technical  statement  summarizing  a por- 
tion of  the  results  and  investigations  Carried  on  during  the 
year  with  reference  to  seed  treatment  and  soil  treatment  for 
smut  control.  Various  methods  of  seed  treatment  are  dis-. 
cussed  in  detail  and  the  advantages  of  the  copper  sulphate 
and  formaldehyde  treatments  are  pointed  out.  The  effect  of 
threshing  injury  upon  grain  and  the  relation  of  the  same  to 
seed  treatment  is  discussed  in  considerable  detail.  Results  of 
variety  tests  from  the  standpoint  of  smut  resistance  are 
given. 

No.  74.  Lice  and  Mites;  Life  History  and  Extermination, 
by  Helen  Dow  Whitaker.  The  effects  of  these  parasites  upon 
poultry  are  discussed  and  remedies  for  the  same  suggested 
with  detailed  directions  for  their  application. 

No.  75.  The  Babcock  Test  and  Its  Application,  by  R.  E. 
Hundertmark.  The  bulletin  discusses  the  value  of  the  Bab- 
cock test  and  gives  the  detailed  directions  for  making  the 
same,  together  with  descriptions  and  illustrations  of  the  nec- 
essary, well-known  apparatus. 

No.  76.  Winter  Egg  Production,  by  Helen  Dow  Whitaker. 
This  bulletin  gives  detailed  and  definite  directions  for  the  se- 
lection of  birds,  housing,  feeding  and  general  care  and  man- 
agement of  poultry  for  the  maximum  production  of  eggs  dur- 
ing winter.  Tabulated  statements  of  various  feed  combina- 
tions are  given,  together  with  an  explanation  of  the  principles 
of  poultry  feeding. 

No.  77.  Spraying  Calendar  for  1915,  by  A.  L.  Melander 
and  D.  C.  George.  This  calendar  gives  concise  and  tabulated 
directions  for  combating  some  sixty  or  seventy  fungous  and 


54 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


insect  pests  of  fruit.  It  also  contains  directions  for  the  manu- 
facture of  sulphur  lime,  oil  spray,  tobacco,  Bordeaux,  arsenate 
of  lead,  and  other  fungicides  and  insecticides. 

No.  78.  The  San  Jose  Scale  Insect,  by  A.  L.  Melander. 
Numerous  difficulties  with  the  San  Jose  scale  make  necessary 
the  dissemination  of  considerable  information  in  regard  to  the 
insect.  The  bulletin  describes  the  general  appearance,  life 
history,  food  plants,  distribution  and  relatives  of  Aspidiotus 
pernicious  together  with  detailed  directions  for  methods  of 
control.  The  bulletin  also  contains  formulae  for  the  manu- 
facture of  crude  oil  emulsion  and  sulphur-lime. 

No.  79.  Pruning,  by  0.  M.  Morris.  Definite  directions 
for  the  pruning  of  various  varieties  of  fruit  and  nut  trees  are 
given  in  considerable  detail  and  explained  by  means  of  ex- 
cellent illustrations.  Types  of  pruning  tools  are  illustrated 
and  their  relative  merits  explained.  The  methods  of  handling 
wounds  and  ties  and  props  are  discussed,  as  is  also  the  ques- 
tion of  seasonable  pruning. 

No.  80.  Fire  Blight,  by  Ira  D.  Cardiff.  This  is  a poster 
designed  to  call  attention  to  the  great  danger  of  the  fruit  in- 
dustry from  fire  blight  and  to  urge  a systematic  campaign  for 
the  eradication  of  the  disease. 

No.  81.  An  Efficient  Alfalfa  Ditcher,  by  Lee  M.  Lampson 
and  Byron  Hunter.  The  bulletin  gives  in  detail  the  directions 
for  the  manufacture  of  a home-made  ditching  machine,  the 
valuable  features  of  which  are  its  ability  to  run  ditches  to  the 
entire  margin  of  the  field  and  also  its  low  cost  of  construction. 
The  bulletin  is  illustrated  with  working  plans  for  the  manu- 
facture of  the  ditcher. 

No.  82.  The  Yellow  Blight  of  the  Tomato,  by  D.  C. 
George.  This  bulletin  is  a popular  account  of  technical  bulle- 
tin No.  115. 

No.  83.  Hints  on  Goose  Culture,  by  Helen  Dow  Whitaker. 
“Under  favorable  conditions  geese  are  the  easiest  of  all  do- 
mestic fowls  to  handle”  and  they  are  much  more  profitable 
than  they  are  usually  given  credit  for.  With  a view  to  en- 
couraging goose  culture  this  bulletin  gives  directions  for 
housing,  yarding,  mating,  care  of  breeders,  hatching,  pluck- 
ing; also  food  and  care  of  goslings. 

No.  84.  Care  of  Brood  Sow,  by  William  Hislop.  This 
bulletin  gives  directions  for  the  care  of  the  brood  sow  both 
before  and  after  farrowing,  together  with  detailed  statements 
of  various  rations  suitable  for  her  at  different  periods. 

No.  85.  A Movable  Hog  House,  by  William  Hislop.  The 
bulletin  gives  in  a concise  manner  the  essentials  of  an  ideal 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  55 


hog  house  from  the  standpoint  of  warmth,  dryness,  light, 
shade,  ventilation,  cleanliness,  safety  and  comfort,  conven- 
ience, serviceability,  durability,  appearance  and  cost.  It  is 
illustrated  with  working  plans,  and  there  is  given  a bill  of 
material  and  an  estimate  of  cost  for  the  construction  of  a 
movable  hog  house.  Acknowledgment  is  herewith  made  to 
the  Iowa  State  College  for  use  of  material  obtained  from 
Iowa  liulletin  No.  152,  which  was  used  largely  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  this  bulletin. 

No.  86.  Turkeys,  by  Helen  Dow  Whitaker.  This  bulletin 
describes  in  detail  four  of  the  leading  breeds  of  turkeys  and 
also  gives  directions  for  the  selection  of  breeding  stock;  hous- 
ing and  feeding,  nesting,  care  of  incubating,  care  of  poults, 
etc.,  in  turkey  husbandry.  Ten  concise  directions  are  given 
for  the  control  and  prevention  of  disease  and  directions  are 
also  given  for  fattening  turkeys. 

No.  87.  Profitable  Hog  Feeding,  by  William  Hislop.  This 
bulletin  gives  methods  of  hog  feeding  together  with  a table 
of  nutrient  values  of  various  hog  feeds.  The  relative  value  of 
tankage,  skim  milk,  butter  milk  and  whey,  soy  bean  meal,  lin- 
seed oil  meal,  wheat  middlings,  wheat  bran,  alfalfa  and  clover 
hay,  cotton-seed  meal  and  various  grains  is  given. 

No.  88.  Wheat  Silage,  by  J.  R.  Shinn.  An  account  of  the 
use  of  wheat  for  silage  in  Snokane  county  by  some  fifteen  or 
twenty  farmers  is  given.  Directions  for  the  use  of  wheat  for 
silage  purposes  and  the  relative  advantage  of  this  as  com- 
pared to  other  crops  is  discussed.  It  is  pointed  out  that  the 
yield  of  wheat  is  much  larger  than  that  of  corn  in  Spokane 
County  and  can  be  harvested  and  put  into  the  silo  much  more 
economically  than  can  corn. 

No.  89.  Control  of  Tumbling  Mustard,  by  Roy  G.  Adams 
and  Byron  Hunter.  This  bulletin  is  an  attempt  to  ameliorate 
conditions  from  the  standpoint  of  the  mustard  pest  in  the 
drier  districts  of  central  Washington.  Tillage  directions  are 
given  for  the  control  of  mustard.  However,  the  bulletin  deals 
primarily  with  a mechanical  attachment  which  can  be  placed 
upon  the  header  of  a combine  harvester  and  which  will  pre- 
vent the  mustard  from  interfering  with  the  operation  of  the 
harvester.  The  bulletin  is  illustrated  with  a view  of  a com- 
bine thus  equipped  and  also  working  drawings  for  the  manu- 
facture of  a home-made  mustard  attachment. 

No.  90.  Farm  Manure:  Methods  of  Preservation  and  Ap- 
plication, by  Geo.  A.  Olson.  This  bulletin  calls  attention  to 
the  necessity  for  conserving  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  sets 
forth  in  detail  the  fertilizer  value  of  the  various  crops  com- 


56 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


mon  to  the  state.  Tabulations  are  ^iven  to  show  the  value  of 
various  types  of  manure,  both  solid  and  liquid,  as  is  also  in- 
formation with  reference  to  the  effect  of  manure  upon  the 
soil. 

No.  91.  Essentials  for  the  Growth  of  Chicks,  by  Helen 
Dow  Whitaker.  Directions  are  given  in  this  bulletin  tor  gen- 
eral care,  selection  of  feed,  water,  etc.,  for  the  growing  chick. 
Detailed  statements  of  rations  are  included. 

NEEDS  OF  THE  EXPERIMENT  STATION. 

While  very  definite  and  valuable  progress  has  been  made 
upon  most  of  the  projects  under  investigation  bv  the  Experi- 
ment Station  during  the  year,  nevertheless  practically  all  of 
the  work  on  these  projects  has  been  restricted  more  or  less 
from  lack  of  adequate  financial  suport.  In  the  case  of  some 
projects  under  investigation,  increased  financial  support  is 
greatly  needed:  e.  g.,  in  forage  crop  investigations,  investga- 
tions  of  animal  diseases,  et  al. 

Two  new  and  quite  distinct  lines  of  work  have  been  re- 
cently inaugurated  at  the  Station.  One  deals  with  dry  land 
problems,  the  other  with  fruit  by-products.  These  are  both 
broad  fields  and  contain  each  many  separate  problems  for  in- 
vestigation. They  are  among  the  most  important  problems 
affecting  the  agriculture  of  the  state  today  and  liberal  finan- 
cial support  is  necessary  for  prosecuting  the  work  in  these 
lines. 

The  agricultural  needs  of  the  state  also  call  for  a con- 
siderable amount  of  experimentation  with  silage,  both  from 
the  standpoint  of  production  and  feeding.  Calf  feeding  ex- 
periments with  substitutes  for  milk  are  necessary  as  an  aid 
to  our  rapidly  developing  dairy  industry,  as  is  also  investiga- 
tions in  connection  with  Pasteurization  of  milk. 

One  of  the  pressing  agricultural  needs  of  this  state  at 
this  time  is  investigation,  research  and  experimentation  in  ir- 
rigation ae-riculture.  The  populous  valleys  of  central  Wash- 
in  o-ton  with  their  fertile  soil  and  almost  subtropical  climate 
have  received  wholly  inadequate  attention  from  the  stand- 
point of  agricultural  invest! nation.  Rplatively  the  farms  are 
small,  the  land  high  priced,  the  insect  and  fungous  pests 
much  more  numerous  and  troublesome  and  the  management 
of  the  farm  and  the  various  farm  enterprises  radically  differ- 
ent from  that  of  other  parts  of  the  state  and  country.  These 
valleys  have  been  settled  relatively  recently  and  by  farmers, 
for  the  most  part,  wholly  unused  to  this  type  of  agriculture. 
Our  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  correct  agricultural  principles 


WASHINGTON  AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION  57 


and  practices  of  those  irrigated  districts  handicaps  us  greatly 
in  lending  adequate  aid  to  these  farmers.  There  is  greatly 
needed  a branch  station  located  in  one  of  these  irrigated  dis- 
tricts for  the  investigation  of  these  problems. 

On  account  of  the  great  diversity  of  agricultural  condi- 
tions found  in  this  state,  it  is  apparent  that  many  of  the  re- 
sults obtained  at  the  main  Station  are  not  generally  applicable 
so  far  as  these  deal  with  soils  and  crops.  It  is  very  essential 
that  the  Experiment  Station  undertake  additional  investiga- 
tions from  the  standpoint  of  crop  rotation  and  soil  fertiliza- 
tion under  the  various  climatic  and  soil  conditions  of  the 
state.  This  line  of  work,  when  conducted  as  it  should  be, 
would  probably  involve  the  establishment  or  six  or  eight 
small  experimental  fields  in  different  portions  of  the  state. 
These,  of  course  need  not  be  large,  as  the  various  experi- 
ments are  conducted  on  twentieth  and  tenth  acre  plots.  We 
have  now  available  for  this  work  land  at  the  Adams  Branch 
Station  at  Lind,  and  upon  the  farm  at  Waterville,  thus  giving 
us  two  locations  for  starting  the  work.  We  should,  however, 
next  year  procure  land  for  one  or  two  additional  locations  in 
the  western  portion  of  the  state.  The  main  Station  at  Pull- 
man is  greatly  in  need  of  additional  land  for  this  work. 

In  addition  to  increasing  our  forage  crop  work,  appro- 
priations should  be  made  for  experiments  with  pasture  crops 
— one  of  the  great  needs  of  Eastern  Washington  as  an  aid  to 
the  livestock  industry. 

The  critical  condition  of  the  horticultural  industry  of  the 
state  also  calls  for  largely  increased  work  in  the  field  of  ento- 
mology and  plant  pathology.  There  is  urgent  need  for  in- 
vestigations upon  the  crown  rot  and  mildew  of  the  apple,  al- 
so the  leaf  curl  of  peach,  the  brown  rot  of  prunes  and  numer- 
ous fungous  diseases  of  potatoes.  In  addition  there  are  scores 
of  other  little  known  but  troublesome  fruit  diseases  which 
should  receive  early  attention  from  the  Station.  A plant  dis- 
ease survey  of  the  state  should  be  undertaken  and  an  in- 
creased amount  of  work  is  necessary  upon  the  life  history  and 
habits  of  the  codling  moth,  root  maggots,  orchard  thrips, 
woolly  aphis,  rosy  aphis  and  a large  number  of  other  insects 
causing  devastation  of  farm  crops  in  the  state. 

Additional  experiments  are  necessary  to  determine  cor- 
rect methods  of  spraying  for  the  control  of  various  insect  and 
fungous  pests.  In  this  connection  our  investigations  on  the 
physiological  effects  of  sprays  should  also  be  increased. 


68 


TWENTY-FIFTH  ANNUAL  REPORT 


Investigations  upon  methods  and  costs  of  irrigation  by 
pumping  should  be  taken  up  during  the  coming  irrigation 
season. 


SUMMARY  OF  PORTION  OF  STATION  WORK. 


Number  of  projects  under  investigation 46 

Number  of  farmers  cooperating 1,300 

Number  of  pounds  of  new  and  improved  seed  dis- 
tributed   47,283 

Number  of  trees  distributed 12,000 

Number  of  newspapers  supplied  with  material  weekly  475 

Editions  of  bulletins  issued: 

Technical 9 

Popular  21 

Newspaper 49 

Number  of  names  added  to  mailing  list  during  the 

year  6,645 

Number  of  names  on  mailing  list 29,050 

Number  of  bulletins  distributed  upon  special  re- 
quest   43,280 


Number  of  pages  of  printed  matter  distributed  . . . .6,609,000 

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^quiries 


1,000 


'!'(»  l);iiance  Ironi  apiii-opriations  for  1913- 


Receipts  $40,914.27 

'Petal  Expenditures  ..36,924.47 

Balance,  withdrawn  fi-oin  Station  for  collep-iate  uses  i$  3,989.80 


The  following  bulletins  are  available  for  distribution.  They  may  be 
had  without  cost  by  addressing  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  Pullman, 
Washington. 


(General  Bulletins. 


4 2.  A New  Sug-ar  Beet  Pest,  1900. 

60.  A Report  on  the  Range  Conditions 
of  Central  Washington,  1904. 

70.  The  Powdery  Mildews  of  Wash- 
ington, 1905. 

74.  Two  Insect  Pests  of  the  Elm. 

78.  The  Goat  Industry  in  Western 
Washington. 

79.  Steer  Feeding  Under  Eastern 
Washington  Conditions. 

91.  Whf'nt  nnd  Flour  Tnvestigat’ons 
— Crop  of  1906-1907. 

100.  Wheat  and  Flour  Investigations 
I. — The  Crops  of  1908-09.  11. — 

The  Composition  and  Milling 
Quality  of  Washington  Wheats. 

III.  — A Simple  Appaiatus  for  De- 
termining the  Milling  Qualities  of 
Wheats. 

102.  Wheat  and  Flour  Investigations 

IV. 

107.  Plant  Diseases  Induced  by  Sclero- 
tinia  Perplexa. 

108.  Bluestem  of  the  Black  Raspberry. 

110.  Commercial  Fertilizers. 

Popular 

19.  The  Use  of  Fertilizer  Lime. 

29.  Milling  Quality  of  Washington 
Wheats.  II. 

31.  Clover  in  the  Palouse  Country. 

36.  Field  Peas  on  a Palouse  Wheat 
Farm. 

39.  The  Milling  Quality  of  Washing- 
ton Wheats.  III. 

4 2.  Alfalfa  Seed  Production. 

4 4.  Some  Soil  Fertility  Problems. 

4 5.  The  Control  of  the  Codling  Moth. 

47.  How  to  Make  Bread  from  Soft 
Wheat  Flours. 

4 9.  Experiments  in  Fertilizing  Al- 
falfa. 

53.  Cause  of  Variation  in  Per  Cent  of 
Fat  of  Market  Cream  from  Farm 
Separators. 

54.  Preserving  Eggs. 

56.  Fire  Blight  of  Pear  and  Apple. 

57.  Prune  Growing  in  Washington. 

58.  Sheep  for  Washington  Farms. 

60.  Corn  Growing  in  Washington. 

61.  The  Peach  Twig-Borer. 

62.  Potato  Growing. 

63.  Swine. 

64.  Winter  Sprays. 

65.  “Fire  Blight.” 

66.  Onion  Culture. 

67.  Top  Grafting  of  Fruit  Treesj. 

68.  Report  on  Chemical  composition 
of  Wheat  . 

Special 

s.  The  Cost  of  Clearing  T^and. 


111.  The  Chemical  Composition  of 

Wheat.  . 

112.  A Preliminary  Repo  t on  Investi- 
gations of  Red  Water  (Hema- 
turia) of  Cattle  in  Washington. 

113.  P'ants  Used  for  Food  by  Sheep  on 
the  Mica  Mountain  Summer 
Range. 

117.  Report  on  Fires  Occurring  in 
Thieshing  Separators  in  Eastern 
Washington  During  the  Summer 
of  1914. 

120.  First  Aununl  Renort,  Bureau  of 

Farm  Development. 

121.  Washington  Wheats. 

122.  A Study  of  Grazing  Conditions  in 
the  Wenaha  National  Forest. 

123.  Time  and  Method  of  Tillage  on  the 

Yield  and  Comparative  Cost  of 
Production  of  Wheat  in  the  Pa- 
louse Region  and  Eastern  Wash- 
ington. 

125.  Preliminary  Note  on  Leaf  Invas- 
ions by  Bacillius  amylovorus. 

126.  Bunt  or  Stinking  Smut  in  Wheat. 

127.  Twenty-Fifth  Annual  Report. 

Bulletins. 

69.  Drj^  Farming  in  Washington. 

70.  The  Alfalfa  Weevil. 

71.  Preparation  of  Fruit  Exhibits. 

72.  Handling  Apples  for  Storage. 

74.  Lice  and  Mites. 

75.  The  Babcock  Test  and  Its  Appli- 
cation. 

76.  Winter  Egg  Production. 

77.  Sp;ay  Calendar  for  1915. 

78.  San  Jose  Scale. 

79.  Pruning. 

80.  Fire  Blight.  (Poster.) 

81.  An  Efficient  Alfalfa  Ditcher. 

83.  Hints  on  Goose  Cultui'e. 

84.  Care  of  Brood  Sow. 

85.  A Moveable  Hog  House. 

86.  Turkeys. 

87.  Profitable  Hog  Feeding. 

88.  Wheat  Silage. 

89.  Control  of  Tumbling  Mustard. 

90.  Farm  Manure. 

91.  Essentials  for  Growth  of  Chicks. 

92.  Feeding  Dairy  Cows  in  Washing- 
ton. 

93.  Rural  Sanitation. 

94.  Contagious  Abortion  in  Cows. 

95.  The  Dairy  Barn  and  Milk  House; 
How  to  Construct  Them. 

96.  Butter-Making  on  the  Farm. 

97.  Dairy  Herd  Records. 


Series. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  DRY  LAND  INVESTIGATION 


Forage  Crops  in  Central 
Washington 

-By- 

M.  A.  McCALL 


BULLETIN  No.  128 
January,  1916 


All  Bulletins  of  this  Station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  om 
application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  O.  Holland  (President  of  College),  Secretary  ex-officio.  .Pullman 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 


EXPERIMENT  STATION  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D. . 
Elton  Fulmer,  M.  A. . . 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M. . . 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D, 
O.  M.  Morris,  M.  S. . . 
Geo.  Severance,  B.  S. 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S. . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S. . 
W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S. . . 
Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S. . . . 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D. . . 
C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B. . . 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 
M.  A.  McCall,  M.  S. . . 
J.  S.  Caldwell,  Ph.  D.. 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S..  . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  M.  S. . 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S. . . . 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S. . . 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S. . . . 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S. . . 
M.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S. 


Director  and  Botanist 

State  Chemist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

By-products  Specialist 

. . . .Assistant  Entomologist 
. . . .Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
.Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
, . . .Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

. . .Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


Forage  Crops  in  Central  Washington 

By  M.  A.  McCALL 

During  the  past  season  the  Dry  Land  Department  of  the 
State  College  conducted  something  over  120  separate  co-oper- 
ative trials  of  forage  crops.  Similar  trials  were  carried  on  by 
the  agriculturists  of  the  various  counties  in  the  dry  sections 
in  co-operation  with  the  Department.  Several  crops  were  tried, 
among  them  being  corn,  Sudan  grass,  feterita,  alfalfa,  sweet 
clover,  and  field  peas.  This  report  deals  with  results  in  those 
localities  with  a rainfall  of  12  inches  and  less,  and  without 
irrigation. 

CORN 

For  dry  land  conditions  corn  does  not  seem  well  adapted  to 
Central  Washington.  Tonnage  yields  this  season  were  rather 
light  and  did  not  compare  with  those  obtained  from  equal  acre- 
ages of  wheat  or  rye.  One  strain  of  corn  developed  in  Colorado 
at  an  altitude  of  7000  feet  and  tried  with  a co-operator  near 
Moses  Lake  this  season  gave  a better  return  there  than  other 
varieties  and  seems  to  be  promising.  On  the  whole,  yields  were 
below  the  limits  of  profit,  even  for  forage,  and  in  most  cases 
were  negligible  from  the  grain  standpoint.  Under  a slightly 
greater  rainfall,  as  in  Douglas  County,  some  favorable  returns 
have  been  secured  by  growers,  but  on  the  whole  the  results, 
thus  far,  with  corn  indicate  that  it  is  not  profitable.  Selection 
and  improvement  of  varieties  may  remedy  this,  but  as  yet  corn 
growing  should  be 'taken  up  only  in  a very  limited  way. 

SORGHUMS 

Under  certain  special  conditions,  where  the  soil  is  light  and 
sandy  and  the  growing  season  warm,  as  in  parts  of 
Franklin  County,  Grant  County,  and  in  Douglas  County  along 
the  Columbia  River,  Sudan  grass  has  done  fairly  well,  but  in 
the  main  this  crop  has  fallen  below  advance  notice  of  its  possi- 
bilities. Even  where  the  crop  has  done  best,  for  dry  land  pur- 
poses, winter  rye  will  outyield  it  and  any  difference  in  feeding 


3 


Fig.  I.  Sudan  grass  grown  by  A.  P.  Guffin,  Warden,  Grant  Co. 
This  crop  has  not  come  up  to  expectations  in  Central  Washington. 

value,  if  existing,  will  not  counterbalance  the  difference  in 
yield.  Where  limited  amounts  of  water  are  available  for  irri- 
gation this  crop  has  made  a good  growth,  but  as  a strictly  dry 
land  crop  it  has  not  proven  of  value  except  for  the  few  very 
special  conditions. 

One  drawback  to  all  sorghum  crops  under  Washington  con- 
ditions is  the  fact  that  they  do  not  mature  until  late,  if  at  all, 
and  growth  continues  until  killing  frosts.  This  results  in  a 
heavy  drain  on  the  soil  moisture  and  plant  food  materials.  This 
was  strongly  evidenced  by  a crop  of  field  peas  grown  this  sea- 
son by  C.  E.  Comstock,  Sixprong,  Klickitat  County.  In  this 
case  the  peas,  grown  on  ground  which  during  the  previous  year 
was  in  various  cultivated  crops,  gave  very  favorable  returns, 
except  on  a small  area  where  a very  scanty  crop  of  Sudan  grass 
had  been  grown. 

Peterita  has  given  returns  not  greatly  superior  to  the  Sudan 
grass.  Some  few  special  conditions  of  soil,  moisture  and  alti- 
tude report  the  crop  as  doing  fairly  well,  but  as  a crop  for  the 
dry  farmer  of  Central  Washington  not  much  can  be  said  in 
favor  of  it.  This  is  probably  true  of  other  sorghums. 


4 


ALFALFA 


Regarding  alfalfa,  testimony  has  been  somewhat  varied.  Mr. 
L.  O.  Dana,  Warden,  Urant  County,  exi)resses  liiiiiself  as  well 


Fig.  II.  Dry  land  alfalfa,  L.  O.  Dana,  Warden,  Grant  Co.  This 
picture  was  taken  May  29,  19  15,  the  second  spring  alter  seeding. 

pleased  witli  this  crop  and  is  planning  on  seeding  several  acres 
for  hog  pasture.  The  accompanying  ilJustration  will  give  an 
idea  of  the  growth  this  crop  attained  the  second  year  from  seed- 


Fig.  III.  Dry  land  alfalfa,  .los.  Clay,  Quincy,  Grant  Co.  Rows 
three  feet  apart. 


ing.  The  crop  is  in  rows  30  inches  apart  and  while  the  yield 
is  scarcely  heavy  enough  to  compete  with  the  cereals  as  a hay 
crop  its  value  as  a feed  promises  a profit  where  cheaply  har- 
vested, as  by  “hogging  off.”  Jos.  Clay,  Quincy,  Grant  County, 
is  also  well  pleased  with  his  alfalfa  seeded  in  rows  and  culti- 
vated. 

Though  not  tried  under  conditions  offering  a real  test,  there 
«eems  to  be  a possibility  of  seed  production  making  alfalfa 
growing  profitable.  Mr.  J.  A.  Dorman,  Wilson  Creek,  Grant 
County,  has  a quarter  section  seeded  in  rows  for  this  purpose. 
Individual  plants  set  seed  heavily,  but  the  yield  as  a whole  was 
cut  down  through  the  growth  of  weeds,  cultivation  not  being 
possible  through  press  of  other  matters.  Mr.  Dana  left  a 
small  tract  to  test  its  seed  producing  ability  and  this  set  a 
•quantity  of  good  seed.  Experience  elsewhere  has  shown  that  it 
is  sometimes  difficult  to  get  dry  land  alfalfa  to  set  seed  where 
too  thick,  therefore  plantings  for  this  purpose  should  be  very 
thin. 

Other  farmers,  who  have  tried  alfalfa,  are  not  so  optimistic 
regarding  its  possibilities.  Failures  are  due  to  a number  of 
causes,  but  in  general  the  writer  believes  that  below  the  10-inch 
rain  belt  the  crop  will  very  seldom  compete  with  the  cereals 
for  forage  purposes.  If  the  crop  will  produce  seed  in  paying 
quantities  this  would  seem  to  be  the  one  factor  that  may  make 
it  one  of  the  crops  to  consider  for  Central  Washington.  Variety 
«eems  to  have  very  little  bearing  on  results. 

SWEET  CLOVER 

Sweet  clover  seems  to  give  more  promise  than  alfalfa  as  a 
forage  crop.  Information  is  not,  however,  sufficiently  com- 
plete to  say  definitely  whether  it  can  compete  with  rye  and 
wheat,  but  the  writer  doubts  its  ability  to  do  so  be- 
low a 10-inch  rainfall.  It  is  worthy,  however,  of 
continued  and  careful  trial,  especially  for  hog  and 
sheep  pasture,  or  for  hay  for  these  animals.  Clinton  Bennett, 
Ritzville,  Adams  County,  and  A.  D.  Cross,  St.  Andrews,  Douglas 
County,  have  both  successfully  pastured  sweet  clover  with  hogs. 


6 


Fig.  IV.  Sweet  clover  grown  in  Adams  County.  Demonstration 
Farm.  Cunningham.  Adams  Co.,  June  15,  1915, 


FIELD  PEAS 

Field  peas  in  double  rows  and  cultivated  gave  good  returns 
in  several  instances  this  past  season.  A.  F.  Hauter,  Warden, 
Grant  County,  and  C.  E.  Comstock,  Sixprong,  Klickitat  County, 
especially  deserve  mention  for  their  results  with  this  crop  under 


Fig.  V.  Field  peas  in  rows.  A.  F.  Hauter,  Warden,  Grant  Co. 
Seeded  in  February,  harvested  July  1.  This  shows  the  crop  on 
June  25,  1915. 


7 


rather  extreme  (‘onclitioiis.  Ju  each  case  the  peas  were  seeded 
very  early,  during  late  February,  aud  were  carefully  cultivated 
and  weeded.  Mr.  Ilauter,  from  a four-acre  tract,  secured  in 
straw  and  ripe  seed  a stack  measuring  a little  over  four  tons. 
Keturns  are  not  available  as  to  seed  yields,  but  both  the  alcove 
mentioned  gave  promise  of  profitable  retuiais.  In  interpreting 
results  it  is,  of  course,  necessary  to  remember  that  the  past  sea- 
son was  an  unusually  favorable  one.  Even  Avith  that  advantage, 
the  results  from  Franklin  County  gave  no  apparent  promise,  nor 
Avere  those  from  the  Horse  Heaven  country  in  Benton  County 
promising,  leading  to  the  opinion  that  the  limit  of  probable  prof- 
itable j)roduction  for  peas  is  not  much  beloAV  the  tO-inch  rain 
area. 


Fig.  VI.  Hogs  in  field  peas.  July  1,  1915. 


Field  peas  offer  particular  advantages  in  the  dry  farmer’s 
scheme,  as  they  can  be  cheaply  harvested  by  hogs,  in  no  wise  in- 
terfering with  the  care  or  harvesting  of  the  Avheat  crop.  They 
offer  an  opportunity  for  rotation  where  they  can  be  groAvn,  and 
being  a legume,  if  properly  inoculated,  will  increase  the  nitro- 


8 


Fig.  VII.  Winter  Rye  in  Western  Adams  County. 

for  the  more  extreme  conditions  of  light  soils  and  short  rain- 
fall. It  has  possibilities  as  a silage  crop  and  its  worth  for  pas- 
ture makes  rye  particularly  valuable.  Mr.  Bennett  of  Ritzville 
filled  a 45-ton  silo  from  two  and  one-half  acres  of  rye  grown 
on  summer  fallow,  corn  under  the  same  conditions  returning 
not  over  two  to  five  tons  per  acre. 

A pit  silo  can  be  constructed  at  a very  reasonable  cost,  the 
one  in  the  accompanying  illustration,  with  a capacity  of  from 
20  to  25  tons,  costing,  including  labor  and  all,  not  over  $30. 


gen  in  the  soil.  In  this  connection  it  should  be  added  that  all 
legumes  should  be  inoculated  in  Central  Washington. 


RYE  AND  WHEAT 


Considered  from  all  angles,  winter  ry.e  and  wheat  are  as  yet 
the  best  forage  crops  for  Washington  dry  farmers.  AVinter  rye 
will  yield  a larger  tonnage  per  acre,  is  a more  certain  crop,  and 
any  faults  it  may  have  are  offset  by  its  advantages,  especially 


9 


Machinerj^  for  filling  is  less  expensive  than  for  the  above- 
ground type,  and  with  rye  as  a suitable  silage  crop  there  is  no 
reason  for  not  having  one  on  every  farm. 


Fig.  VIII.  Filling  a pit  silo  in  Grant  County.  Spring  wheat  is 
being  used  in  this  case  for  the  silage. 

Rye  pasture  and  the  pit  silo  properly  used  can  go  a long 
way  toward  adding  to  the  prosperity  and  wealth  of  the  dry 


Fig.  IX.  Cattle  on  rye  pasture,  W.  W.  Haile,  Cunningham.  Mr. 
Haile  is  adding  to  his  herd  and  seeding  more  rye. 

farmers  of  AVasliington,  especially  of  those  on  the  light  drift 
soils. 


IQ 


RATE  AND  DATE  OF  SEEDING 


Sudan  grass,  alfalfa,  sweet  clover  and  peas  have  all  given 
most  favorable  results  when  seeded  in  rows  and  given  clean 
cultivation.  Rows  should  be  at  least  30  inches  apart  and  three 
feet  is  not  too  far.  Peas  should  be  in  double  rows,  three  feet 
apart,  and  where  the  rainfall  is  as  much  as  12  inches,  sweet 
clover  may  be  seeded  12  inches  to  14  inches  apart. 

Rates  of  seeding  on  dry  lands  should  be  very  much  lighter 
than  under  ordinary  conditions.  One  pound  of  alfalfa  seed 
and  from  two  to  four  pounds  of  sweet  clover  are  enough  to 
seed  an  acre.  Peas  should  be  seeded  comparatively  thick  in 
the  rows  to  support  the  plants  properly,  70  to  80  pounds  giving 
best  results. 

Alfalfa,  sweet  clover  and  peas  should  all  be  seeded  as  early 
as  the  ground  will  permit  during  February  and  March.  Late 
seeding,  particularly  for  peas,  is  disastrous.  Seeding  should 
also  be  shallow  and  preferably  on  summer  fallow. 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  AGRICULTURE 
Farm  Crops 


Oats  in  Washington 

-By- 

E.  G.  SCHAFER 
— and — 

E.  F.  GAINES 


BULLETIN  No.  129 
March,  1916 


All  Bulletins  of  this  station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


E.  T.  Coman,  President Spokane 

W.  A.  Ritz,  Vice  President Walla  Walla 

E.  O.  Holland  (President  of  College),  Secretary  ex-officio.  .Pullman 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

D.  S.  Troy Chimacum 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 


EXPERIMENT  STATION  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D. . 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M. . . 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D 
O.  M.  Morris,  M.  S. . . 
Geo.  Severance,  B.  S. 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S. . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S. . 
W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S. . . 
Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S. . . . 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D. . . 
C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B. . . 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. 
M.  A.  McCall,  B.  S. . . 
J.  S.  Caldwell,  Ph.  D.. 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S. . . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  M.  S. . 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S. . . 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S. . . . 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S 

A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S. . . 
M.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S. 


Director  and  Botanist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

By-products  Specialist 

. . . .Assistant  Entomologist 
. . . .Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
.Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
. . .Assistant  Horticulturist 

. Assistant  Chemist 

. . .Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


OATS  IN  WASHINGTON 

By 

E.  G.  SCHAFER,  Agronomist 
and 

E.  F.  GAINES,  Acting  Oerealist 


The  oat  crop  of  Washington  occupies  a place  second  in  im- 
portance to  wheat.  The  average  annual  production  of  the 
state  for  the  ten-year  period  ending  with  1914  was  11,629,253 
bushels,  according  to  the  Year  Book  of  the  United  States  De- 
partment of  Agriculture.  The  average  area  for  the  same  ten- 
year  period  was  242,831  acres,  making  an  average  yield  of  47.9 
bushels  per  acre.  The  average  acreage  for  the  five-year  period 
ending  1909  was  198,261  and  for  the  following  five-year  period 
it  had  increased  to  287,400  acres.  For  the  five-year  period 
ending  1909  the  average  production  was  9,619,307  bushels  and 
for  the  following  five-year  period  it  was  13,639,200  bushels. 
This  comparison  shows  that  the  total  production  as  well  as 
the  area  devoted  to  the  oat  crop  is  increasing. 

The  greater  part  of  the  Washington  oat  crop  is  produced 
in  two  widely  separated  districts  of  the  state.  One  center  of 
production  is  in  Skagit  County  in  Western  Washington,  and 
the  other  is  in  Eastern  Washingington  in  Spokane  and  Whit- 
man counties. 

A study  of  conditions  is  sections  where  oats  are  produced 
extensively,  indicate  that  they  thrive  best  in  a rather  humid 
climate.-  Experiments  conducted  to  determine  the  moisture 
requirements  of  different  crops,  show  that  oats  require  more 
water  to  produce  a specified  amount  of  dry  matter  than  either 
barley  or  wheat.  The  highest  yields  are  obtained  where  the 
growing  season  is  long  and  comparatively  cool. 

The  heavier  soil  types  are  better  suited  to  oat  production 
than  soils  of  lighter  character;  however,  oats  grow  well  on  a 
great  variety  of  soils.  The  character  of  soil  is  generally  of . 


3 


Fig.  I.  Distribution  of  oats  in  Washington. 


less  importance  than  climatic  conditions.  'Because  of  their 
moisture  requirements,  oats  are  not  extensively  grown  in  the 
drier  parts  of  Eastern  Washington  where  wheat  will  produce 
a profitable  crop  with  less  moisture.  Oats  produce  a profit- 
able crop  on  a less  well-prepared  seed  bed  than  is  required 
for  wheat.  They  are  often  used  in  the  cropping  system  after 
wheat,  where  there  is  sufficient  moisture.  It  requires  mure 
time  to  prepare  a suitable  seed  bed  for  wheat,  and  wheat  i& 
usually  seeded  on  land’  that  has  been  summer  fallowed.  An 
increase  in  the  area  devoted  to  oats  in  Western  Washington 
may  be  expected  as  they  should  do  well  on  much  of  the 
logged-off  land  in  that  part  of  the  State. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  OAT  VARIETIES 

One  variety  of  oats  may  be  superior  to  others  because  of  its 
ability  to  produce  a larger  yield  of  grain  per  acre.  When  two 
varieties  produce  approximately  equal  yields,  the  choice  of  a 
variety  may  depend  upon  some  favorable  plant  or  grain  char- 
acteristic, as  stiffness  of  straw,  date  of  maturity,  etc.  The 
tabular  description  of  varieties  in  Table  I shows  points  of 
similarity  and  difference  in  the  varieties  described.  There  is 
a variation  of  approximately  ten  inches  in  the  height  of  the 
different  varieties  when  grown  under  the  same  conditions.  A 
similar  variation  is  shown  in  the  stiffness  of  the  straw  or  in 
its  ability  to  stand  erect  until  maturity.  The  estimate  of  the 
stiffness  of  straw  is  recorded  in  per  cent.  Two  of  the  varieties 
have  a compact  side  panicle.  The  other  fourteen  have  a 
spreading  form  of  panicle.  The  grain  of  one  variety  is  light 
yellow  and  one  is  dark  gray.  All  other  varieties  are  white. 
The  variation  in  size  of  grain  is  indicated  by  the  number  of 
grains  contained  in  five  grams.  The  per  cent  of  hull  shows 
the  relation  between  the  hull  and  oat  grain.  The  portion  of 
grain  not  consisting  of  hull  is  kernel.  The  w^eight  per  bushel 
depends  somewhat  upon  the  plumpness  of  the  grain  but  also 
on  how  compactly  the  kernels  lie  together.  The  date  of  ma- 
turity varies  from  July  25  to  August  13,  under  the  conditions-, 
at  Pullman,  Washington,  where  the  tests  were  made. 


5 


Tabular  Description  of  Oat  Varieties 


Date  ripe 

lO  ^ — CO 

bibbflb]bW)^bX)W)W)bX)bi)W)bflbX)>»!5X)W) 

Weight  per  bu., 
pounds 

OC-Ot>-t:^Ol>t^0':t>-C:OC'-:oC0O 

a^a:c^r^Loa5I^-Ol^ir-lT^<^^LOcdl-^(^q 

Percent  hull 

oC'^Lr5LOt~'^Oairocjoti-.OT— • 

J:oiO<r^c^-LOi>-t>-Giwi'Tt-'^utcr:Goi>- 

Size:  No.  of 
grains  in  five 
grams 

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” t-H  tH  tH  C<l  rH  03  i— It— !r-ir— !i— li— I CO 

Color  of  grain 

1 

white 

white 

white 

white 

light  yellow 

white 

white 

dark  gray 

white 

white 

white 

white 

white 

white 

white 

white 

I 

1 

Side  or  spreading 
head 

spreading 

spreading- 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading- 

side 

spreading 

side 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading 

spreading 

Stiffness  of 

straw,  pet 

1 

aicrsa:)ai03coo3Tt<oq'^cooq<jii-foa5 
cooscocot-c^LocoociaiT— OiT-iT-Ioico 
aioooooooooooiooasooocooaiasaioo 

1 

j Height  of  plant 
in  inches 

I:-t-cJiO'^03C-0301C5'^00CDl:-'=C^CD 

cnooooodT-o«5oqc750J7:Oia5a5ooo3 

Wash.  No 

a5''^T-IOqrHCTSiHCOCOOOOT-IC<IUOCOO 

LOCD'Tf'XlCDCOCO'XiLO'TfTtTLO'^TfiCDOO 

VARIETY 

Abundance  

Banner  | 

Sparrowbill 

Swedish  Select 

Sixty  Day  

Danish 

Potato 

Grey 

Regenerated  Swedish  Select 

Palouse  Wonder  

Dun 

.Madison 

Canadian 

Lincoln  

Yielder 

Hulless 

6 


Abundance  is  the  highest  yielding  variety  of  oats  included 
in  the  tests.  It  does  not  bear  any  extreme  plant  character- 
istics. This  oat  has  a spreading  panicle  and  white  grain.  It  is 
medium  in  height  of  plant,  ability  to  stand  erect,  size  of  grain 
and  date  of  maturity.  The  variety  was  recently  introduced 
from  Scotland. 

Banner  is  very  similar  to  Abundance  in  plant  and  grain 
characteristics,  but  has  a slightly  smaller  per  cent  of  hull.  It 
was  also  brought  to  Washington  from  Scotland. 


Fig.  II.  Showing  spreading  form  of  panicle  (or  head),  threshed 
grain  and  grain  as  it  appears  in  the  spikelet.  1.  Swedish  Select  oats. 
2.  Sixty  Day  oats.  Note  the  spikelet  of  Swedish  Select  contains  two 
grains  and  the  spikelet  of  Sixty  Day  contains  three. 


7 


Sparrowbill  is  also  a white  oat  with  a spreading  form  of 
panicle.  This  variety  has  produced  high  yields  and  has  a very 
plump  grain.  The  grain  is  large,  as  shown  by  the  small  num- 
bers of  kernels  contained  in  five  grams. 

Swedish  Select  is  probably  the  most  extensively  produced 
variety  of  oats  in  the  State.  It  has  a large  spreading  panicle 
and  white  grain.  It  grows  vigorously  and  is  well  adapted  to 
the  cultural  methods  employed  in  Washington. 

Sixty  Day  is  the  earliest  of  all  varieties  tested.  The  aver- 
age date  of  maturity  at  Pullman  is  July  25.  The  plant  is 
shorter  than  other  varieties  and  it  has  a small,  spreading 
panicle.  A third  grain  which  is  smaller  than  the  primary  and 
secondary  grains  is  often  produced  in  the  spikelet.  This  re- 
sults in  a smaller  average  size  for  the  grain  and  a larger  num- 
ber is  contained  in  five  grams  than  in  any  other  variety  ex- 
cept Hulless.  The  color  of  the  grain  is  light  yellow  and  it  has 
a comparatively  low  per  cent  of  hull.  Its  early  maturity 
makes  it  a favorable  oat  where  the  growing  season  is  shortened 
either  by  insufficient  moisture  or  low  temperature.  When 
grown  under  these  conditions,  it  may  be  more  successful  than 
later  maturing  varieties  which  produce  a larger  yield  than 
Sitxy  Day  under  more  favorable  conditions. 

Danish  is  a large  late  maturing  variety  and  has  a side  type 
of  panicle. 

The  Potato  oat  has  broad  leaves  and  comparatively  short 
but  stiff  stems.  It  is  a favorable  variety  where  there  is  com- 
petition from  weeds  or  where  the  crop  is  likely  to  lodge.  The 
grain  is  small  but  plump. 

The  Grey  oat  has  a heavy  straw  and  grows  the  tallest  of 
any  of  the  varieties  tested.  It  is  a side  oat  and  has  a dark 
gray  grain.  It  is  sometimes  planted  in  the  fall,  but  as  a winter- 
variety  it  is  not  generally  hardy. 

Regenerated  Swedish  Select  is  probably  a selection  of  Swed- 
ish Select  and  cannot  be  distinguished  from  it.  The  tests  con- 
ducted show  that  it  produces  a somewhat  larger  yield. 


8 


Palouse  Wonder  is  an  oat  very  similar  to  Swedish  Select 
but  has  a lower  per  cent  of  hull.  The  selection  tested  was  ob- 
tained from  a grower  near  Garfield,  Washington. 

Madison  is  similar  to  Swedish  Select. 

Lincoln  and  Canadian  are  comparatively  early  varieties  and 
stand  first  and  second  in  high  weight  per  bushel  of  the  vari- 
eties tested. 

Hulless  (AVash.  680)  has  a comparatively  short  straw  but 
a large  spreading  form  of  panicle.  The  spikelets  are  elongat- 
ed and  each  one  may  have  as  many  as  four  or  five  kernels. 


Fig.  III.  1.  Hulless  oats,  showing  panicle,  the  threshed  grain  and 
a single  spikelet.  2.  Grey  oats,  showing  compact  form  of  panicle, 
threshed  grain  and  grain  as  it  appears  in  the  spikelet. 


9 


The  kernel  is  not  tightly  enclosed  within  the  flowering  glume 
and  palea  and  the  grain  falls  free  from  the  hulls  ^vhen 
threshed.  Hulless  oats  have  never  been  extensively  groAvn  in 
the  Northwest  and  their  low  yield  would  indicate  that  they 
have  but  little  value. 

VARIETY  TESTS  OF  OATS  IN  NURSERY  AND  FIELD 

TABLE  II. 


Yield  of  Oat  Varieties — Nursery  Test 


VARIETY 

Wash.  No 

Grams  per 

plot,  1913 

Grams  per 

plot,  1914 

Grams  per 

plot,  1915 ...  . 

Grams  per 

plot,  average.  . 

Comparative* 
yield 

Abundance  

759 

3669 

3129 

2940 

3246 

117.9 

Banner  

764 

3819 

3116 

2918 

3284 

119.3 

Sparrowbill 

741 

3748 

3234 

3040 

3341 

121.4 

Swedish  Select 

662 

3171 

2877 

2505 

2851 

103.6 

Sixty  Day 

661 

3167 

2513 

2881 

2854 

103.7 

Danish  

739 

3910 

2959 

2156 

3008 

109.3 

Potato 

761 

3622 

2581 

2662 

2955 

107.3 

Grey  

Regenerated  Swedish 

663 

3200 

3030 

2731 

2987 

108.5 

Select . 

756 

3618 

2984 

2688 

3097 

112.5 

Palouse  Wonder  . . . 

748 

3456 

2799 

2888 

3048 

110.7 

Dun 

740 

3515 

•2734 

2786 

3012 

109.4 

Madison 

751 

3333 

2759 

2930 

3007 

109.2 

Canadian 

742 

3341 

2629 

2991 

2987 

108.5 

Lincoln  

745 

3315 

2465 

3017 

2932 

106.6 

Yielder 

763 

3061 

2879 

2812 

2917 

106.0 

Waverly 

747 

3174 

2712 

2353 

2746 

99.7 

Storm  King 

746 

3056 

2424 

2689 

2723 

98.9 

Sandwich 

758 

2984 

2252 

2659 

2632 

95.6 

Potato 

757 

2778 

2455 

2478 

2570 

93.4 

Black  Tartarian  . . .*. 

762 

3026 

2429 

2164 

2540 

92.3 

Black  

665 

2805 

2424 

2141 

2457 

89.2 

Record 

760 

2939 

2653 

1487 

2360 

85.7 

Selected  Potato 

761 

1380 

2995 

2722 

2342 

85.1 

Black  Tartarian  .... 

750 

2891 

2130 

1946 

2322 

84.3 

Hulless  . . 

680 

3092 

753 

1980 

1941 

70.5 

Chinese  Hulless  . . . 

686 

1132 

1644 

1476 

1417 

51.5 

*The  average  of  all  varieties,  2753  grams,  was  taken  as  100. 

Note:  Washington  numbers  680  and  686  do  not  retain  their 

hulls  when  threshed.  The  actual  weight  of  these  two  varieties  was 
75  per  cent  of  the  yield  recorded  in  this  table.  The  amount  added 
for  the  absence  of  hulls  makes  them  more  nearly  comparable  with 
the  other  varieties. 


10 


Table  II  contains  the  nursery  yield  of  each  variety  for  1913, 
1914  and  1915,  the  average  for  the  three  years  and  the  com- 
parative yield.  The  data  given  for  each  variety  for  each  of 
the  three  years  is  the  total  on  three  separate  plots.  The 
average  for  the  variety  is  the  average  of  the  tests  conducted 
during  the  three  years.  The  comparative  yield  is  the  yield 
reduced  to  a percentage  basis  in  which  the  average  of  all  vari- 
eties (2753  grams)  is  given  a value  of  100. 

The  results  of  the  test  show  a variation  in  comparative  yield 
ranging  from  121.4  for  Sparrowbill  down  to  51.5  for  Chinese 
Hulless.  All  varieties  haveing  a comparative  yield  of  more 
than  100  may  be  rated  above  the  average.  Banner  and  Abund- 
ance are  both  high  producing  varieties  and  rank  second  and 
third,  respectively,  in  yield  in  the  nursery  test. 


TABLE  III. 


Yield  of  Oat  Varieties — Field  Test 


VARIETY 

Wash.  No 

Bushels  per  acre, 
1914 

Bushels  per  acre, 
1915 

Bushels  per  acre, 
average 

Comparative 
yield* 

Abundance  

759 

87.4 

76.1 

81.7 

111.9 

Banner  

764 

80.2 

76.3 

78.3 

107.3 

Sparrowbill 

741 

76.0 

77.0 

76.5 

104.8 

Swedish  Select  . . . 

662 

75.4 

81.0 

78.2 

107.1 

Sixty  Day 

661 

69.6 

‘ 84.9 

77.2 

105.8 

Danish  

739 

67.4 

63.5 

65.4 

89.6 

Potato 

761 

68.2 

62.1 

65.9 

90.3 

Grey 

663 

52.0- 

76.0 

64.0 

87.7 

*The  average  of  all  varieties,  73  bushels,  was  taken  as  100. 


Table  III  contains  the  yields  per  acre  of  eight  varieties 
grown  in  field  plots.  This  table  also  contains  the  comparative 
yields  which  show  the  relation  of  each  variety  to  the  average 
of  all  varieties.  It  will  be  noted  that  Abundance,  Banner, 
Swedish  Select  and  Sixty  Day  are  the  highest  yielding  vari- 
eties in  the  field  test. 


11 


TABLE  IV. 


Results  From  Field  and  Nursery  Averaged 


VARIETY 

1 Wash 
! No. 

Nursery 

1 Field 

Average 

Rank 

Abundance  

759 

117.9 

111.9 

114.9 

1 

Banner  

764 

119.3 

107.3 

113.3 

2 

Sparrowbill 

741 

121.4 

104.8 

113.1 

3 

Swedish  Select  .... 

662 

103.6 

107.1 

105.3 

4 

Sixty  Day  ! 

661 

• 103.7 

105.8 

X04.7 

5 

Danish 

739 

109.3 

89.6 

99.4 

6 

Potato 

761 

107.3 

90.3 

98.8 

7 

Grey 

663 

108.5 

87.7 

98.1 

8 

Table  IV  shows  a comparison  between,  (1)  the  results  ob- 
tained in  the  nursery  and  field,  (2)  the  average  results  from 
nursery  and  field,  and  (3)  the  rank  in  yield  of  varieties.  It 
is  possible  to  compare  the  results  from  the  nursery  which 
were  recorded  in  grams  with  those  from  the  field,  which  were 
recorded  in  bushels,  since  they  are  both  reduced  to  a percent- 
age basis.  Only  varieties  which  were  tested  both  in  the  nurs- 
ery and  field  are  included  in  this  table. 

The  data  given  in  the  preceding  pages  are  insufficient  to 
show  conclusively  the  merits  of  all  the  varieties  of  oats  tested, 
but  should  indicate  the  varieties  likely  to  be  of  most  value. 
The  varieties  tested  in  the  nursery  were  grown  in  rod  rows  in 
triplicate  during  each  of  the  three  years.  The  varieties  tested 
in  the  field  were  grown  in  single  one-fifteenth  acre  plots  in 
1914.  In  1915  all  of  the  varieties  except  Abundance  w^ere 
grown  in  duplicate  onfe-fortieth  acre  plots.  The  yield  for 
Abundance  was  computed  from  a single  one-fortieth  acre  plot, 
owing  to  an  irregularity  in  planting. 

Factors  other  than  yield,  such  as  date  of  maturity,  per  cent 
of  hull  to  grain,  etc.,  influence  the  value  of  different  varieties 
of  oats.  Various  plant  and  grain  descriptions,  showing  variety 
characteristics  are  contained  in  the  table  of  Tabular  Descrip- 
tion of  Oat  Varieties. 


12 


LOOSE  SMUT  IN  OATS 


An  examination  of  oat  fields  in  Whitman  and  Spokane 
counties  during  the  latter  part  of  July,  1915,  showed  the  pres- 
ence of  large  quantities  of  loose  smut.  It  was  not  uncommon 
to  find  fields  containing  five  and  ten  per  cent  of  smut  and 
in  som;e  cases  twenty-five  per  cent  of  the  crop  was  smutted. 

The  smut  appears  in  oats  soon  after  the  crop  begins  to  head 
and  all  of  the  heads  of  plants  that  contain  smut  are  usually 
destroyed  by  the  fungus.  The  smut  masses  break  open  soon 
after  they  appear  and  the  smut  spores  are  distributed  by  the 
wind.  A portion  of  the  spores  come  in  contact  with  normal 
heads  while  the  grain  is  standing  in  the  field.  Practically  no 
smut  will  be  observed  in  the  field  at  harvest  time  and  the  loss 
to  the  crop  is  commonly  underestimated. 

No  further  harm  is  done  to  the  maturing  crop  but  the  smut 
spores  which  cling  to  the  grain  are  a source  of  infection  for 
the  next  year’s  crop  if  the  seed  containing  them  is  planted. 

It  is  believed  that  the  smut  of  oats  can  be  practically  elimin- 
ated by  proper  treatment  of  seed.  Dr.  P.  D.  Heald  of  the 
Division  of  Plant  Pathology  recommends  the  following  treat- 
ment, using  formalin  or  a forty  per  cent  solution  of  formalde- 
hyde, one  pound  to  forty  gallons  of  water: 

1.  Put  a sufficient  amount  of  the  solution  (35  to  40  gal- 
lons) into  a barrel  to  completely  immerse  a sack  of  seed  or 
use  a larger  quantity  in  a tank. 

2.  Put  the  seed  to  be  treated  into  sacks  (one  and  one-half 
bushels)  and  dip  each  sack  into  the  solution,  allowing  it  to 
remain  ten  minutes. 

3.  Remove  the  sack  and  drain,  allowing  the  excess  of  the 
liquid  to  run  back  into  the  barrel  or  tank.  Replenish  the  solu- 
tion as  often  as  necessary  from  a stock  solution  so  as  to  always 
have  the  sack  completely  immersed. 

4.  Allow  the  treated  seed  to  remain  over  night  in  the  wet 
sacks  and  use  the  next  daj^  If  the  seed  is  not  used  within 
forty-eight  hours  after  treatment,  it  should  be  spread  out  to 
dry  to  prevent  sprouting  in  the  sacks. 


13 


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STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  ENTOMOLOGY  AND  ZOOLOGY 


THE  DIPTEROUS  FAMILY 
SCATOPSIDiE 

-By- 

A.  L.  MELANDER 


BULLETIN  No.  130 
April,  1916 


All  Bulletins  of  this  station  sent  tree  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  Director. 


HOAIU)  OF  CONTROI 


W.  A.  Ritz,  President Walla  Walla 

D.  S.  Troy,  Vice  President * Chimacum 

E.  O.  Holland  (President  of  College)  Secretary  ex-officio.  .Pullman 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

E.  T.  Coman Spokane 


FXPFRLMFNT  STATION  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D. . 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  :\l..  . 
A.  L.  :\Ielander,  Sc.  H. 
O.  :\1.  :Morris,  ^\.  S. . . . 
Geo.  Severance,  B.  S. . 

C.  C.  Thom,  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S. . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S. . . 
W.  T.  Shaw,  :\I.  S.... 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S. . . 

Wm.  Hislop,  ^I.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D. . . . 
C.  A.  :\lagoon,  A.  B. . . 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. . 
M.  A.  IMcCall,  B.  S. . . . 
J.  S.  Caldwell,  Ph.  D. . 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S. . . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  M.  S.. 

E.  F.  Gaines,  IM.  S. . . . 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S. . . 

D,  C.  George,  B,  S. . . . 

H.  Woolman 

F.  W.  Allen,  IM.  S. . . . 
A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S. . . 
IM.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S. 


...  .Director  and  Botanist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

By-products  Specialist 

. . . .Assistant  Entomologist 
, . . .Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
. . . Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

. . .Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


THE  DIPTEROUS  FAMILY  SCATOPSIDiE* 

By  A.  L.  MP^LANDER,  Entomologist 


Aldrich’s  Catalog  of  1905  lists  two  genera,  Scatopse  and  As- 
pistes,  with  the  Bibionidse,  citing  ten  species  of  which  three  are 
considered  “unrecognizable”.  In  1912  Enderlein  published  an 
interesting  division  of  the  former  of  these  genera,  ranking  the 
group  as  a Family,  Scatopsid^e,  most  closely  related  to  the  Sci- 
aridae.  Without  passing  judgment  on  the  validity  of  Enderlein’s 
genera,  based  as  they  are  principally  on  slight  differences  in 
neuration,  his  arrangement  may  be  recited  since  it  bears  so 
strongly  on  the  nomenclature  of  the  North  American  species. 
The  discovery  of  several  new  forms  and  especially  of  a remark- 
able micropterous  genus  living  with  the  carpenter  ant  is  further 
noteworthy  and  calls  for  the  issuance  of  the  present  paper. 

Scatopsidae  include  minute  black  flies,  at  present  bearing  the 
stigma  of  human  disapproval  owing  to  their  habits  of  living  in 
houses  but  breeding  in  excrement.  Several  species  have  been 
reared  from  sewers,  privies  and  exposed  human  faeces  and  the 
same  species  frequently  swarm  in  windows. 

The  following  table  of  genera  is  an  adaptation  from  that 
given  by  Enderlein. f As  most  of  the  characters  are  derived 
from  the  neuration,  the  following  key  to  the  veins  of  the  wing 
will  be  of  assistance.  The  costa  and  two  adjacent  veins  are 
thickened,  the  remaining  veins  are  weak.  The  two  thickened 
veins,  called  by  Enderlein  the  radius  (r)  and  the  radial  branch 
(rr)  are  identified  by  Williston  as  the  first  (r^)  and  third  (r4,5) 
veins,  the  second  vein  (r2,3)  being  represented  by  the  short  ra- 
dial crossvein.  The  media  is  forked,  its  branches,  m^  and  m2, 
sometimes  being  disjoined.  The  next  two  veins  then  are  the 
two  cubitals  which  are  separate  usually  to  the  base  of  the  wing. 


^Contribution  from  the  Zoological  Laboratory  of  the  State  College  of 
Washington. 

tOuenther  Enderlein,  Zur  Kenntnis  der  Zygophthalmen.  Zool.  Anz.  xl. 
261-282  (Oct.  1912). 


3 


TABLK  OF  (JEXFRA  OF  SCATOPSIl).^] 


Third  vein  forked  ( Fijj:.  7).  ( ‘Subfamily  Corvnoscelina;  ) ..(^nrape) 

C'orynoscclis  .tfioheman,  1858. 
Third  vein  simple,  or  the  insect  wingless.  (Subfamily  Scatopsinae)  2. 

2.  Wings  present  and  normally  developed.  3. 

Wings  vestigial  or  absent.  14.. 

3.  Front  tibiae  ending  in  a thorn-like  process  (Fig  5)  ; basal  part  of 

fourth  vein  wanting,  media  arising  much  beyond  the  radial  cross- 
vein (Fig.  8)  ; antennae  of  $ 12-jointed,  of  $ 7-jointed  (Fig.  9). 
(Europe;  North  America)  Aspis/es  Meigen,  1818. 

Front  tibiae  without  end-process.  4. 

4.  Hind  metatarsi  as  long  as  or  longer  than  the  remainder  of  the  tarsus; 

legs  slender.  (Europe)  Anarete  Haliday,  1833. 

Hind  metatarsi  shorter  than  the  remainder  of  the  tarsus;  legs  rather 
stout.  5. 

5.  Petiole  of  the  medial  veins  arising  much  beyond  the  radial  crossvein 

(Fig.  10).  (Europe)  Ectaetia  Enderlein,  1912. 

Petiole  of  the  medial  veins  arising  before  or  at  the  radial  cross- 
vein. 6. 

6.  Costa  continued  beyond  the  end  of  the  third  vein  (r^),  medial  vein 

(mH  incomplete  toward  the  base,  anterior  crossvein  proximal  to 
the  short  first  vein  which  ends  beyond  the  middle  of  the  wing 
(Fig.  II ).  (Europe)  Synneiiron  Eundstreem,  1910. 

Costa  interrupted  near  the  end  of  the  third  vein,  base  of  the  medial 
vein  (m2)  present,  first  vein  independent  from  the  third  at  the 
base  of  the  wing.  7. 

7.  A more  or  less  complete  crossvein  between  the  third  and  fourth 

veins.  8. 

No  crossvein  between  the  third  and  fourth  veins.  9. 

8.  Crossvein  between  the  third  and  fourth  veins  incomplete,  arising 

from  the  fourth  vein  and  extending  halfway  toward  the  third 
vein,  seventh  vein  (CU2)  lightly  arched  (Fig.  12).  (Europe;  North 
America;  Australia)  Scatopse  Geoffroy,  1764. 

Crossvein  between  the  third  and  fourth  veins  complete,  last  vein  (cuo) 
strongly  arched.  (Europe)  Holoplagia  Enderlein,  1912. 

9.  Fourth  vein  (mi)  complete.  10. 

Base  of  fourth  vein  w^anting.  12. 

10.  Apical  cell  relatively  short,  its  petiole  very  long  (Fig.  20)  ; antennae 

short,  12-jointed;  minute  species.  (Europe;  North  America) 

Szvammerdamella  Enderlein,  1912. 
Apical  cell  relatively  long,  usually  longer  than  its  petiole.  ii. 

11.  Last  vein  (CU2)  straight  or  more  or  less  bowed  once  (Figs.  17,  18, 

19)  ; antennae  12-jointed,  but  the  last  three  joints  more  or  less 
fused  into  a short  club;  petiole  of  apical  cell  sometimes  as  long 
as  the  cell.  (Europe;  North  and  South  America;  Australia) 

Reichertella  Enderlein,  1912. 
Last  vein  (ciu*)  strongly  sinuous,  bent  two  or  three  times,  petiole  of 
apical  cell  conspicuously  shorter  than  the  cell,  third  vein  ending 
at  the  middle  of  the  wing  (Figs.  14,  15,  16).  (Europe;  North 
America;  South  America  ?)  Rhegmoclema  Enderlein,  1912. 


12.  Last  vein  (CII2)  twice  bent  almost  at  right  angles  (Fig.  13)  ; an- 

tennae i2-jointed,  the  terminal  joints  not  fused.  (Europe) 

Aldrovandiella  Enderlein,  1912. 
Last  vein  straight  or  at  most  simply  arched  at  the  base.  13. 

13.  Petiole  of  medial  veins  arising  opposite  or  beyond  the  middle  of  the 

first  vein.  (Europe)  Anapausis  Enderlein,  1912. 

Petiole  of  the  medial  veins  arising  close  to  the  base  of  the  wing  be- 
fore the  middle  of  the  first  vein  (Fig.  21).  (Europe;  Central 
America)  Psectrosciara  Kieffer,  1911. 

14.  Wings  vestigial,  apical  cell  closed  (Fig.  4)  ; antennae  lo-jointed. 

(North  America)  Coholdia,  new  genus. 

Wings  entirely  absent;  antennae  12-jointed,  the  individual  joints  dis- 
tinct. tEurope)  Thripomorpha  Enderlin,  1905. 

ASPISTES  Meigen. 

jMeigen,  Syst.  Bes.  I.  319  (1818) 

Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Sc.  IX.  3410  (1850) 

Schiner,  Fauna  Austr.  Dipt.  11.  347  (1864) 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  266  (1912) 

Artliria:  Kirby,  Fauna  Bor.  Am.  Ins.  311  (1837) 

Front  tibiae  ending  in  a curved  spinous  process.  Media  aris- 
ing much  beyond  the  basally  located  radial  crossvein,  its  an- 
terior branch  (the  fourth  vein)  broadly  disconnected  from  the 
posterior  branch.  Antennae  S 10- 12-jointed,  $ 7-  or  8-jointed. 
Thorax  robust,  with  an  anterior,  elevated,  strongly  margined, 
punctured,  dorsal  area.  Abdomen  broadly  depressed.  Femora 
stout,  especially  the  front  pair  which  bear  fine  bristles  beneath, 
hind  tibiae  tipped  with  a set  of  stouter  bristles,  hind  metatarsi 
as  long  as  the  remaining  joints  together. 

The  two  following  species  occur  in  Europe  as  well  as  in 
America : 

Femora  and  halteres  black,  tibiae  and  tarsi  yellow ; thorax  entirely  black. 

A.  berolinensis  Meigen. 

Legs  yellowish,  the  apex  of  the  tarsi  infuscated;  halteres  whitish;  thorax 
typically  margined  with  3^ellow.  A.  analis  Kirby. 

Aspistes  berolinensis  Meigen  (Fig.  5) 

Meigen,  Syst.  Bes.  I.  319,  pi.  xi.  f.  16  (1818) 

Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Sc.  IX.  3411  (1850) 

Walker,  Ins.  Brit.  Dipt.  III.,  pi.  xxiv.  f.  6 (1856) 

Schiner,  Faun.  Austr.  Dipt.  11.  348  (1864) 

Wulp,  Dipt.  Neerland.  1.  209,  pi.  vii.  f.  6 (1877) 

Theobald,  Brit.  Flies,  1.  160,  pi.  iii.  f.  5 (1892) 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  266,  f.  2.  (1912) 

pullus  Walker,  Ins.  Brit.  Dipt.  III.  145  (1856) 

Body  entirely  black,  shining.  Thoracic  protuberance  deeply 
punctured,  the  declivity  to  the  scutellum  and  on  the  sides  stri- 
ated, pubescence  sparse  but  evident,  reddish.  Abdomen  finely 


5 


punctulate,  the  last  segment  punctured  and  spinulose.  Coxae  and 
femora  black,  remainder  of  legs  yellowish  except  the  dark  last 
tarsal  joint.  Halteres  black.  Wings  clear  hyaline,  the  anterior 
veins  black  and  thickened  apically,  the  first  vein  ending  near  the 
middle  of  the  wing,  the  third  vein  extending  widely  distant 
from  the  first. 

Length  1. 5-2. 5 mm. 

The  species  occurs  through  North  and  Central  Europe.  A 
specimen  received  from  Dr.  J.  M.  Aldrich  from  Lafayette,  In- 
diana, May  23,  1915,  agrees  so  exactly  with  the  detailed  Euro- 
pean descriptions  and  figures  that  nothing  would  be  gained  by 
giving  it  a new  species  name  other  than  to  indicate  its  Ameri- 
can provenience. 

Aspistes  analis  Kirby  (Fig.  9,  antenna) 

Kirby,  Fauna  Bor.  Am.  31 1,  pi.  v.  f.  8 (1837)  Arthria 
Walker,  List  Dipt.  Brit.  Miis.  I.  115  (1848)  Arthria 
Kirby,  Can.  Ent.  XIII.  165  (1881) 

borealis  Loew,  Stett.  Ent.  Ztg.  VIII.  69  (1847) 

Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Sc.  IX.  3413  (1850) 

Body  black,  thorax  marked  on  each  side  with  a reddish-yellow 
line  from  the  collar  to  the  base  of  the  wing;  halteres  white; 
legs  reddish-yellow  except  the  black  apex  of  the  tarsi ; anus 
yellow  as  is  sometimes  the  margin  of  the  ventral  segments. 

Northern  Europe  and  Canada.  Dr.  Aldrich  reports,  in  litt., 
that  the  Victoria  Museum  at  Ottawa  has  a female  specimen  of 
this  species  from  Banff,  Alberta. 

var.  Thorax  not  marked  with  the  lateral  reddish  line. 

New  jMexieo  (Johnson,  Tr. Ain. Ent. Soe.  XXIX,  101  (1908)). 

SCATOPSE  (leoftVoy. 

Geoffroy,  Hist.  d’Ins.  II.  545  (1764) 

Meigen,  Illiger’s  Mag.  II.  364  (1803) 

Kirby,  Can.  Ent.  XIII.  165  (1881) 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  266  (1912) 

As  restricted  by  Enderlein  the  genus  Scatopse  is  thus  dehned  : 
front  tibiae  not  continued  in  a prong;  antennae  12-jointed,  the 
last  three  joints  closely  united  into  a short  club;  a crossvein 
present  extending  from  the  fourth  vein  about  halfway  toward 
the  third,  the  last  vein  (cuo)  slightly  arcuate,  the  prefurca  of 
the  medial  fork  arising  opposite  the  radial  crossvein. 

b 


Scatopse  notata  Linnaeus  (Fig.  12,  wing) 

Linnaeiis,  Syst.  Nat.  ed.  X.  588  (1758)  Tipula 
Loew,  Linnaea  Entom.  I.  325,  pi.  iii.  f.  i (1846) 

Walker,  List  Dipt.  Brit.  Miis.  I.  113  (1848) 

Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Sc.  IX.  3397  (1850) 

Walker,  Ins.  Brit.  Dipt.  III.  141  (1856) 

Schiller,  Faun.  Austr.  Dipt.  II.  351  (1864) 

Wulp,  Dipt.  Neerland.  I.  206,  pi.  vii.  f.  4 (1877) 

Skuse,  Proc.  Linn.  Soc.  N.  S.  Wales  (2)  V.  638  (1890) 

Theobald,  Brit.  Flies,  1.  156  (1892) 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  260,  f.  (1912) 

albipennis  Fabricius,  Ent.  Syst.  IV.  250  (1794)  Tipula 
latrinanim  Deeger,  Mem.  I’Hist.  d.  Ins.  VI.  430,  pi.  xxviii.  f.  1-4 
(1776)  Tipula 

longipcunis  Skuse,  Proc.  Linn.  vSoc.  N.  S.  Wales  (2)  III.  1383,  pi. 
xxxix.  f.  9 (1889) 

punctata  Meigen,  Syst.  Bes.  1.  301  (1818) 
scatiwpsc  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  V.  2827  (1792)  Tipula 

Shining  black  but  with  yellow  marks  of  variable  extent  on 
the  mesopleural  sutures,  postalar  spaces  and  sides  of  the  first 
abdominal  segment.  Legs  piceous,  the  center  of  the  tibise  usu- 
ally with  a broad  brownish  annulus.  Thorax  sparsely  pubescent, 
the  hairs,  longer  on  the  scutellum.  Abdomen  broad,  depressed, 
highly  polished.  Halteres  yellow  to  brown.  Anterior  veins 
brown,  the  third  vein  closely  parallel  with  the  costa  and  almost 
attaining  the  last  fourth  of  the  wing;  last  vein  uniformly  sin- 
uous. 

$ hind  metatarsi  about  one-half  as  long  as  the  subsequent 
joint. 

Length  about  2.5  mm. 

This  species  is  widely  distributed  throughout  both  Europe 
and  North  America.  It  has  been  reared  from  human  faeces. 
The  North  American  records  of  distribution  include:  (}reen- 
land  (Lundbeck)  ; Alaska  to  Alabama  (Coquillett)  ; New  Jer- 
sey (Smith  Catalog).  Specimens  are  in  the  writer’s  collection 
from  Pullman,  Chehalis,  Wawawai,  Spokane  and  Prosser,  all  in 
Washington:  Moscow  Vlt.,  Idaho;  Palo  Alto,  California,  and 
Philadelphia,  Pennsylvania. 

SWAMMERDAMELLA  Enderlein 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  277  (1912) 

First  and  third  veins  ending  close  together  slightly  beyond  the 
end  of  the  basal  third  of  the  wing;  fork  of  the  media  very 
short,  typically  about  one-third  the  length  of  the  prefurca,  and 


i 


widely  triangular;  last  vein  twice  angled.  Antennae  short,  I2- 
jointed,  the  basal  joints  very  short  and  broad. 

To  this  genus  belong  those  forms  where  the  apical  cell  is 
markedly  shorter  than  its  petiole.  The  flies  are  most  minute 
and  occur  in  Europe  and  North  America.  The  following  two 
species  are  American : 

Fork  of  the  media  moderate,  its  branches  beginning  close  together  but 
apicalh'  suddenly  diverging,  the  anterior  recurved,  the  posterior  in- 
curved. S.  pygmaea  Loew. 

Fork  of  the  media  very  short,  its  branches  nearly  straight  and  diverging 
to  form  an  isosceles  triangle.  S.  brevicornis  Meigen. 

Swammerdamella  brevicornis  Meigen  (Fig.  20,  wing) 

Aleigen,  Syst.  Bes.  VI.  314  (1830)  Scatopse 
Loew,  Linnae-a  Entom.  I.  332,  pi.  iii.  f.  6 (1848)  Scatopse 
Walker,  List  Dipt.  Brit.  Miis.  1.  113  (1848)  Scatopse 
Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Sc.  IX.  3409  (1850)  Scatopse 
Walker,  Ins.  Brit.  Dipt.  HI.  114  (1856)  Scatopse 
Schiner,  Faiin.  Austr.  Dipt.  11.  351  (1864)  Scatopse 
Wulp,  Dipt.  Neerland.  I.  207,  pi.  vii.  f.  5 (1877)  Scatopse 
Theobald,  Brit.  Flies,  1.  157  (1892)  Scatopse 
Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  278,  f.  9 (1912) 

Black,  subopaque,  the  tarsi  brown  to  black,  the  haltexes  black. 
Wings  hyaline,  the  costa  and  radial  veins  yellowish,  the  third 
vein  ending  much  before  the  middle  of  the  wing,  prefurca  about 
three  times  as  long  as  the  medial  fork,  the  branches  of  which 
are  nearly  straight  and  diverge  at  an  angle  of  sixty  degrees. 

Length  about  i mm. 

Widely  distributed  throughout  Europe.  The  writer  has  taken 
the  species  at  Chicago,  Illinois,  and  at  Oroville,  Washington. 

Swammerdamella  pygmaea  Loew 
Loew,  Berlin.  Ent.  Zts.  VIII.  56;  Cent.  V.  no.  13  (1864)  Scatopse 

9 . Black,  moderately  shining,  the  tarsi  yellowish.  Antennae 
short,  rather  thick.  Wings  white  hyaline,  the  costa  and  first  two 
veins  grayish,  the  others  colorless ; the  third  vein  extending  a 
little  beyond  the  first  but  not  attaining  the  middle  of  the  wing; 
fork  of  the  media  moderate  but  much  shorter  than  the  peduncle, 
its  branches  basally  close  together,  apically  suddenly  diverging, 
the  anterior  recurved,  the  posterior  incurved. 

Length  .85  mm.  D.  C.  (Translation.) 

The  species  is  reported  from  New'  Jersey  (Smith  Catalog). 
The  \\  est  Indian  species  identified  as  pygmaea  by  W illiston  and 
others  is  certainly  different,  as  its  apical  cell  is  much  longer 


than  the  prefurca.  Apparently  it  belongs  to  the  genus  Rhegmo- 
clema. 

REICHERTELLA  Enderlein. 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  268  (1912) 

This  is  the  dominant  genus  of  the  family  possessing  numerous 
European  species.  It  is  principally  characterized  by  having  the 
fork  of  the  media  complete,  the  last  vein  nearly  straight  or  but 
little  curved,  the  third  vein  attaining  the  costa  well  beyond  the 
middle  of  the  wing  and  rarely  ending  close  to  the  first  vein. 
The  fork  of  the  media,  although  variable,  is  usually  consider- 
ably longer  than  the  prefurca.  The  antennae  have  twelve  joints, 
the  last  three  of  which  are  more  or  less  fused  but  the  others  are 
quite  distinct.  The  halteres  of  the  American  species  are  pale, 
provided  this  applies  to  varicornis  in  the  description  of  which 
the  color  is  not  specified.  The  American  species  can  be  recog- 
nized by  the  following  tabulation : 

1.  Antennae  entirely  black,  the  third  joint  shorter  than  wide;  knees  not 

paler  ; halteres  yellowish.  2. 

Joints  3 to  6 of  antennae  yellow,  the  third  joint  slightly  longer  than 
wide,  the  twelfth  joint  with  a whitish  reflection;  body  black;  legs 
brown,  the  knees  and  tarsi  yellowish.  R.  varicornis  Coquillett. 

2.  Body  entirely  black  with  black  pubescence;  legs  black,  the  femora 

stout;  third  section  of  the  costa  longer  than  the  second,  median 
fork  more  than  twice  as  long  as  its  petiole  (Fig.  19)  ; central  fila- 
ment very  short,  hidden.  R.  femoralis  Meigen. 

Sides  of  thorax  partly  yellowish  like  the  notal  pubescence;  legs  in 
part  brown,  the  femora  less  robust;  second  section  of  the  costa 
nearly  twice  as  long  as  the  third,  median  fork  less  than  twice  as 
long  as  the  petiole  (Figs.  17,  18)  ; central  filament  exposed.  3. 

3.  Humeri  and  scutellum  yellowish ; central  filament  nearly  half  as  long 

as  the  abdoiuen,  curving  forward  and  ending  in  a spiral. 

R.  collaris,  new  species. 
Humeri  and  scutellum  black,  the  mesopleural  sutures  and  postalar 
spots  alone  yellowish ; central  filament  one-fourth  as  long  as  the 
abdomen,  erect  and  almost  straight,  clasped  by  two  downward 
projecting  black  prongs  of  the  same  length  as  the  filament. 

R.  uncinata,  new  species. 

Reichertella  femoralis  Meigen  (Fig.  19,  wing) 

Meigen,  Syst.  Bes.  VH.  55  (1838)  Scatopse 
Walker,  List  Dipt.  Brit.  Mus.  I.  114  (1848)  Scatopse 

pulicaria  Loew,  Linnae-a  Entom.  I.  338,  pi.  iii.  f.  16  (1846)  Scatopse 
Schiner,  Faun.  Austr.  Dipt.  H.  351  (1864)  Scatopse 
Wulp,  Dipt.  Neerland.  T.  207  (1877)  Scatopse 
Theobald,  Brit.  Flies,  T.  158  (1892)  Scatopse 
Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  272,  f.  4 (1912) 


Body,  antennae  and  legs  entirely  black.  Thorax  shining,  its 
fine  close  pubescence  black,  abdomen  rather  shining,  depressed, 
the  central  filament  minute  and  hidden,  a pair  of  very  short  but 
broad,  downward-projecting  terminal  valves  present;  femora 
robust ; halteres  sordid  whitish  ; wings  translucent,  the  anterior 
veins  yellowish,  the  three  costal  sections  proportioned  i : i : 1.3, 
prefurca  less  than  half  as  long  as  the  posterior  branch  of  the 
median  fork,  last  vein  lightly  curved. 

Length  about  2 mm. 

This  species  is  widely  distributed  and  common  throughout 
Europe.  In  America  it  is  recorded  from  Virginia  (Howard), 
New  Hampshire  (Slosson)  and  Wisconsin  (Wulp).  Howard 
reared  the  insect  from  human  excrement  and  noted  its  occur- 
rence in  both  privies  and  dwellings. 

Reichertella  collaris,  new  species  (Fig.  17,  wing) 

Body  black  except  for  the  prothorax,  broad  mesopleural  su- 
tures, root  of  wing,  postalar  spot,  scutellum,  base  of  abdomen 
laterally  and  narrow  posterior  margins  of  the  abdominal  seg- 
ments, which  are  yellowish ; halteres  pale  yellow,  central  fila- 
ment, pteropleurse  and  legs  piceous  brown ; pubescence  yellow- 
ish, the  scutellum  with  longer  marginal  yellow  hairs,  pubescence 
of  base  of  abdomen  distinct.  Central  filament  of  male  very 
slender,  as  long  as  three  abdominal  segments,  erect  or  curving 
forward,  the  apical  third  curved  in  corkscrew  fashion,  no  ter- 
minal hooks  visible,  the  hypopygium  ending  in  two  small  pos- 
terior-directed rounded  tubercles.  Apical  third  of  femora  almost 
black.  Wings  nearly  hyaline,  the  anterior  veins  testaceous,  costal 
sections  proportioned  i:  1.3:  i,  prefurca  about  five-sixths  as 
long  as  the  posterior  branch  of  the  median  fork,  but  relatively 
shorter  in  the  female,  last  vein  gently  arched. 

Length  2 mm. 

Four  males  and  two  females,  collected  by  the  writer  at  Che- 
halis,  Washington,  August  23,  1911. 

Reichertella  uncinata,  new  species  (Fig.  18,  wing) 

$ . Black  except  for  the  broad  yellow  sutures  bounding  the 
mesopleurie,  the  reddish  root  of  the  wing,  the  postalar  spots,  the 
reddish  sides  of  the  basal  abdominal  segment,  the  red  central 
filament,  the  white  halteres  and  the  pale  wings.  -Thorax,  scutel- 
lum and  the  abdomen  except  on  the  sides  shining,  mesonotal 
pubescence  yellowish,  rather  sparse  and  long;  no  scutellar  bris- 
tles. Central  filament  erect,  tapering,  as  long  as  two  of  the 

10 


abdominal  segments,  straddled  at  the  base  by  a pair  of  jet 
black,  downward-curving  hooks  which  are  slightly  longer  than 
the  central  filament;  beneath  the  base  of  the  filament  the  hypo- 
pygium  expands  in  a pair  of  broad  laterally  directed  quadrate 
plates ; pubescence  of  the  apical  portion  of  the  abdomen  rather 
long  and  dense,  yellow.  Basal  two-thirds  of  the  tibiae  brown- 
ish, remainder  of  the  legs  jet  black,  pubescence  yellow.  Wings 
unusually  large,  grayish  hyaline,  the  anterior  veins  yellow,  the 
three  costal  sections  proportioned  i:  1.3:  i,  prefurca  three- 
fourths  as ‘long  as  the  posterior  branch  of  the  median  fork,  last 
vein  very  lightly  arched. 

Length  2.5  mm. 

A single  specimen  collected  by  the  late  Eldred  Jenne  at  Doug- 
las, Alaska,  August  5,  1901.  Type  in  the  writer’s  collection. 

Reichertella  varicornis  Coquillett 

Coquillett,  Proc.  U.  S.  Nat.  Miis.  XXV.  96  (1902)  Scatopse 

“Head  and  body  black,  mesonotum  somewhat  polished,  an- 
tennae about  as  long  as  the  head  and  thorax,  black,  joints  three 
to  six  bright  yellow,  apex  of  the  last  joint  with  a white  reflec- 
tion, joint  three  slightly  longer  than  wide,  the  succeeding  joints 
becoming  successively  shorter  except  the  last  one ; legs  dark 
brown,  extreme  ends  of  femora,  apices  of  tibiae,  and  whole  of 
tarsi  yellow,  broad  bases  of  tibiae  white;  wings  grayish  hyaline, 
veins  brown,  apex  of  third  vein  near  three-fourths  length  of 
wing,  penultimate  section  of  fourth  vein  about  two-thirds  as 
long  as  the  upper  fork  of  this  vein,  the  forks  gradually  diverg- 
ing from  each  other  for  a short  distance,  at  which  point  the 
upper  fork  is  strongly  bowed  upward,  then  extends  nearly  paral- 
lel with  the  lower  one  nearly  to  the  wing-margin,  where  they 
diverge  rather  strongly  from  each  other,  fifth  and  sixth  veins 
distinct,  the  latter  strongly  sinuous.” 

$ . Length  1.5  mm. 

Washington,  D.  C. 

RHEGMOOLEMA  Enderlein 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  276  (1912) 

Third  vein  ending  near  the  middle  of  the  wing  and  usually 
very  close  to  the  first,  petiole  of  the  median  fork  short,  fourth 
vein  not  interrupted,  the  last  vein  (CU2)  strongly  sinuous.  An- 
tennae i2-jointed,  the  individual  joints  indistinct.  Abdomen  ro- 
bust, broad,  flat  above,  the  genitalia  short  but  stout. 

The  halteres  of  the  American  species  are  dark,  even  jet  black 

11 


in  color.  Enderlein  suggests  the  possibility  of  generic  identity 
of  Rhegmoclema  with  Reichertella.  His  principal  character,  the 
relative  sinuosity  of  the  second  cubital  vein,  is  rather  elusive 
for  a generic  foundation.  It  may  be  that  Coquillett’s  varicornis 
will  find  its  location  here  instead  of  in  Reichertella  to  which  it 
was  assigned  by  Enderlein.  The  American  species  of  Rhegmo- 
clema are  separable  by  the  following  table : 

1.  First  and  second  sections  of  the  costa  of  nearly  equal  extent  (Fig. 

3)  ; body  rather  opaque.  Rh.  atrata  Say. 

Second  section  of  the  costa  much  shorter  than  the  first  section ; body 
more  or  less  shining.  2. 

2.  Sides  of  mesonotum,  pleurae  in  part,  scutellum,  halteres,  tip  of  ab- 

domen and  more  or  less  of  legs  brownish;  prefurca  very  short, 
about  one-fourth  as  long  as  posterior  branch  of  median  fork. 

Rh.  pygmaea  Williston. 
Body  and  appendages  entirely  black;  prefurca  relatively  longer.  3. 

3.  Anterior  veins  black,  prefurca  more  than  half  as  long  as  the  pos- 

terior branch  of  the  median  fork  (Fig.  15)  ; scutellum  with  a 
couple  of  short  lateral  bristles;  no  postalar  spot;  abdomen  opaque. 

Rh.  aterrima,  new  species. 
Anterior  veins  yellowish,  prefurca  less  than  half  as  long  as  posterior 
branch  of  median  fork  (Figs.  14,  16)  ; scutellum  margined  with 
eight  bristles;  a postalar  yellow  spot;  abdomen  shining  along  the 
middle.  4. 

4.  Thorax  subshining,  uniformly  convex,  not  pitted ; telson  $ with 

parallel  sides.  Rh.  bimaculata,  new  species. 

Thorax  shining,  with  a median  row  of  confluent  single  punctures 
which  become  larger  toward  the  scutellum;  telson  triangular. 

Rh.  scrobicollis,  new  species. 

Rhegmoclema  atrata  Say 

(Fig.  I,  larva;  Fig.  2,  pupa;  Fig.  3,  adult) 

Say,  Long’s  Exped.  II.  367  (1824)  Scatopse 
Wiedemann,  Auss.  Zwfl.  Ins.  I.  71  (1828)  Scatopse 
Say,  Compl.  Works,  I.  250  (1859)  Scatopse 
? Arribalzaga,  Natural.  Argent.  I.  299  (1878)  Scatopse 
Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  276  (1912) 

fuscipes  Meigen,  Syst.  Bes.  VI.  314  (1830)  Scatopse 
recurva  Loew,  Linnaea  Entom.  I.  330,  pi.  iii.  f.  4 (1846)  Scatopse 
Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Sc.  IX.  3407  (1850)  Scatopse 
Wulp,  Dipt.  Neerland.  1.  207  (1877)  Scatopse 
Theobald,  Brit.  Flies,  1.  158  (1892)  Scatopse 

Black  over  all,  only  slightly  shining,  the  deflexed  sides  of  the 
abdominal  tergites  opaque  velvety  black ; tarsi  and  a vague 
middle  annulus  of  the  hind  tibije  more  or  less  yellowish.  Tho- 
rax and  abdomen  furnished  with  brief  and  rather  close  black 
pubescence;  about  six  or  eight  short  marginal  bristles  to  the 

12 


scutellum.  Abdomen  of  female  with  seven  tergites,  the  sixth 
broadly  and  shallowly  emarginate  behind,  the  sixth  sternite 
sharply  and  more  deeply  excised ; telson  of  male  long  and 
narrow.  Costa,  first  and  third  veins  black,  remainder  of  wing 
hyaline,  the  third  vein  ending  a little  beyond  the  middle  of  the 
wing,  the  costal  sections  approximately  4:  3:  6,  prefurca  of 
media  two-thirds  as  long  as  the  posterior  branch  of  the  fork, 
last  vein  strongly  sinuous. 

Length  about  2 mm. 

Recorded  from  Pennsylvania  (Say),  New  Jersey  (Smith 
List),  and  Bermuda  (Johnson  and  Verrill).  The  writer  has 
found  the  species  swarming  on  windows  at  Pullman  and  Col- 
fax, Washington.  At  Sacramento,  California,  he  observed  it 
breeding  in  incredible  numbers  in  decayed  lemons  at  the  State 
Insectary.  The  dies  would  congregate  at  the  edge  of  the  cages 
to  form  solid  black  masses.  The  larvae  (Pig.  i)  are  yellowish 
slender  maggots  whose  brown  head  remains  attached  to  the 
puparium  after  pupation.  Within  the  puparium  the  definitive 
appendages  of  the  adult  are  visible  while  from  its  back  project 
a pair  of  black  bifurcate  respiratory  processes  (Fig.  2).  Doane 
has  reared  specimens  at  the  Washington  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station  from  decaying  pea  pods. 

It  is  not  improbable  that  Walker’s  obscura  from  the  Hudson 
Bay  region  is  this  species.  The  species  is  widely  distributed  in 
Europe  and  supposedly  occurs  in  South  America  also.  Ender- 
lein  states  that  the  second  section  of  the  costa  is  much  longer 
than  the  first,  which  is  not  the  case  in  the  American  specimens 
at  hand,  nor  does  it  agree  with  the  descriptions  of  recurva. 

Rhegmoclema  pygmsea  Williston  (not  Loew) 

Williston,  Tr.  Ent.  Soc.  Bond.,  1896,  269,  pi.  viii.  f.  26  (1896)  Scatopse 
Coquillett,  Proc.  U.  S.  Nat.  Mus.  XXII.  250  (1900)  Scatopse 

“ $ . Black,  but  little  shining,  the  margins  of  the  mesonotum, 
the  scutellum,  the  pleurae  in  part,  femora  in  part,  knob  of  hal- 
teres,  and  tip  of  abdomen  somewhat  lighter  colored  or  brown. 
The  tibiae  in  part,  and  the  tarsi,  yellow  or  yellowish.  Antennae 
black,  stout,  the  joints  closely  united,  and  gradually  increasing 
in  width  to  very  near  the  tip.  Wings  grayish  hyaline,  the  an- 
terior thickened  veins  dark  brown,  the  others  light  yellowish  ; 
the  short  veins  do  not  reach  nearly  to  the  middle  of  the  wing; 
the  short  prefurca  of  the  forked  cell  takes  its  origin  nearly 

Id 


opposite  the  connecting  crossvein  of  the  subcostal  • cell ; the 
l)ranches  of  the  forked  cell  are  very  long  and  strongly  curved 
away  from  each  other  near  the  margin  of  the  wing/' 

Length  2 mm. 

Williston’s  species  with  its  short  prefurca  is  undoubtedly  dis- 
tinct from  Loew’s,  which  has  the  prefurca  unusually  long.  The 
latter  has  been  here  assigned  to  Swammerdamella.  The  West 
Indian  records  of  pygmaea  are  considered  to  refer  to  Willis- 
ton's  species. 

St.  Vincent  (Williston),  Porto  Rico  (Coquillett),  Bermuda 
(Johnson,  1913). 

Rhegmoclema  aterrima,  new  species  (Pig.  15,  wing) 

$ . Entirely  black,  including  the  antennae,  legs,  halteres  and 
anterior  veins.  Antennae  thicker  than  the  front  tibiae,  the  indi- 
vidual joints  indistinct.  Mesonotum  narrow,  shining,  its  pubes- 
cence very  fine  and  black ; scutellum  with  a few  short  black 
lateral  bristles.  Abdomen  opaque  black,  with  black  hairs,  rather 
cylindrical,  as  broad  at  the  truncate  apex  as  at  the  middle,  six 
segments  visible,  the  last  half  as  long  as  the  preceding  and  not 
excised.  Third  vein  ending  before  the  middle  of  the  wing,  the 
costal  sections  proportioned  2 : 1:4,  prefurca  about  two-thirds 
as  long  as  the  posterior  branch  of  the  median  fork ; last  vein 
strongly  arched. 

Length  1.2  mm. 

A single  specimen  obtained  by  the  writer  in  grass  sweepings 
at  Chatcolet  Lake,  Idaho,  at  the  close  of  August,  1915. 

Rhegmoclema  bimaculata,  new  species  (Pig.  14,  wing) 

$ . Entirely  black  except  for  a conspicuous  postalar  yellow 
spot  which  includes  the  extreme  sides  of  the  scutellum.  An- 
tennie  scarcely  as  thick  as  the  front  tibiae.  Mesonotum  subshin- 
ing, its  pubescence  dark  brown  and  rather  sparse,  scutellum 
margined  with  about  ten  black  bristles.  Abdomen  oval,  de- 
pressed and  entirely  shining,  its  sparse  pubescence  brown,  telson 
(seventh  tergite)  U-shaped.  Anterior  veins  yellowish,  the  costal 
sections  proportioned  5 : 2 : 8,  prefurca  nearly  one-third  the 
length  of  the  posterior  branch  of  the  median  fork,  last  vein 
strongly  sinuous,  the  first  bend  acute,  the  opposite  bend  round- 
ing rectangular. 

$ . Seventh  abdominal  segment  not  excised. 

Length  2 mm. 


U 


Type  $ from  Quilcene,  Washington,  August  i6,  1910.  Three 
$ paratypes  from  Tacoma  and  Vashon,  Washington,  and  Sheep 
Creek,  Alaska,  the  last  collected  by  Eldred  Jenne. 

Rhegmoclema  scrobicollis,  new  species  (Fig.  16,  wing) 

$ . Entirely  black  except  for  a rufous  postalar  spot.  An- 
tennae about  as  thick  as  the  front  tibiae.  Mesonotum  shining, 
its  fine  and  rather  sparse  pubescence  brown,  the  prealar  hairs 
black,  scutellum  with  ten  long  black  bristles,  a row  of  single 
punctures  forming  a median  groove  down  the  mesonotum.  Ab- 
domen depressed,  oval,  shining,  its  short  pubescence  brown,  tel- 
son  V-shaped.  Anterior  veins  yellow,  costal  sections  propor- 
tioned 4:  i:  5,  prefurca  one-third  as  long  as  the  posterior 
branch  of  the  median  fork,  last  vein  strongly  sinuous,  the  first 
bend  rectangular,  the  second  obtuse. 

Eength  2 mm. 

A single  specimen  collected  by  Professor  William  M.  Wheeler 
in  San  Diego  County,  California,  March  ii,  1897.  Type  in  the 
writer’s  collection. 

ALDROVANDIELLA  Endcrlein 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  Xfi.  278  (1912) 

Easily  recognized  among  the  Scatopsids  in  having  the  fourth 
vein  (mj)  imperfect  basally  and  the  last  vein  (CU2)  twice  bent 
almost  at  right  angles.  The  antennal  joints  are  distinctly  sepa- 
rated. But  a single  species  is  known,  occurring  in  Europe  and 
America. 

Aldrovandiella  halterata  Meigen  (Fig.  13,  wing) 

Meigen,  Syst.  Beschr.  VII.  55  (1838)  Scatopse 
Loew,  Linnae-a  Entom.  I.  339,  pi.  iii.  f.  ii  (1846)  Scatopse 
Walker,  List  Dipt.  Brit.  Mus.  I.  114  (1848)  Scatopse 
Zetterstedt,  Dipt.  Scand.  IX.  3404  (1850)  Scatopse 
Schiner,  Faun.  Austr.  Dipt.  II.  349  (1864) 

Theobald,  Brit.  Flies,  I.  157  (1892)  Scatopse 
Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XL.  278,  f.  10  (1912) 

albipennis  Roser,  Correspbl.  Wuerttemb.  1.  52  (1840)  Scatopse 

minuta  Zetterstedt,  Ins.  Lapp.  801  (1838)  Scatopse 

Body  with  the  antennae,  mouth-parts,  legs  and  genitalia  en- 
tirely black,  the  knob  of  the  halteres  white.  Abdomen  strongly 
depressed,  laterally  opaque.  Wings  clear,  narrow,  the  anterior 
veins  brown,  the  third  vein  ending  before  the  middle  of  the 
wing,  the  radial  crossvein  placed  near  the  end  of  the  first  vein, 
the  second  medial  vein  straight  with  the  prefurca  and  nearly 

15 


parallel  with  the  imperfect  fourth  vein  (mi),  the  last  vein 
(CU2)  strongly  bent  twice. 

I^ength  2 mm. 

The  occurrence  of  the  species  in  America  is  based  on  three 
specimens  in  the  writer’s  collection,  received  from  Mr.  H.  S. 
Parish,  who  collected  them  by  sweeping  at  Wabamic,  June  14, 
1915,  and  Sudbury,  July  22,  1915,  Ontario. 

PSECTROSOIARA  Kieffer 

Kieffer,  Tr.  Linn.  Soc.  Lond.  XV.  192  (1912) 

Enderlein,  Arch.  f.  Natiirgesch.,  1911,  1.  3,  Suppl.  192  (1911) 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XI.  280  (1912) 

Readily  characterized  by  the  narrow  head  and  elongate  body, 
lo-jointed  antennae,  broadened  front  trochanters,  long  third 
vein,  basal  location  of  the  radial  crossvein  and  straight  fifth 
vein  (m2)  which  arises  close  to  the  base  of  the  wing. 

Two  southern  species  are  known  from  America. 

Thorax  and  abdomen  uniformly  blackish  brown,  the  abdomen  as  long  as 
the  head  and  thorax  together ; anterior  veins  yellowish. 

Ps.  scatopsiformis  Enderlein. 
Abdomen  densely  pubescent  and  velvety  black  except  for  a middle  shining 
dorsal  stripe,  the  abdomen  twice  as  long  as  the  head  and  thorax  to- 
gether ; anterior  veins  blackish.  Ps.  calif ornica  Cole. 

Psectrosciara  scatopsiformis  Enderlein  (Fig.  21,  wing) 

Enderlein,  Zool.  Anz.  XI.  281,  figs.  12-14  (1912)  • 

$ . Head  and  antennae  black,  proboscis  brown.  Thorax,  ab- 
domen and  legs  dark  brown.  Wings  hyaline,  the  costa,  first  and 
third  veins  yellowish  brown,  the  third  vein  straight  and  almost 
reaching  the  distal  fourth  of  the  wing,  radial  crossvein  located 
much  before  the  middle  of  the  first  vein  and  opposite  the  origin 
of  the  medial  vein  (prefurca)  which  continues  straight  to  the 
wing-margin,  the  forking  of  the  radial  branches  imperfect  at 
the  middle  of  the  wing,  cubital  veins  nearly  straight. 

Length  3 mm.,  of  abdomen  1.5  mm. 

Costa  Rica,  Central  America.  Type  in  the  Zoological  Mu- 
seum of  Stettin.  The  preceding  diagnosis  is  abridged  from  En- 
derlein’s  description  (loc.  cit.). 

Psectrosciara  calif  ornica  Cole  (Fig.  6) 

Cole,  Rept.  Laguna  Marine  Lab.  I.  151  (1912)  Scatopse 
calif orniana  Cole,  1.  c.  fig.  85  (1912)  Scatopse 

$ . Entirely  black,  antennal  joints  indistinctly  separated, 

16 


mouthparts  black.  Thorax  shining,  the  notum  with  fine  pubes- 
cence, no  scutellar  hairs ; abdomen  densely  pubescent,  opaque 
velvety  except  for  a moderate  middle  dorsal  shining  stripe 
which  includes  the  elongate  genitalia.  Hind  metatarsi  as  long 
as  the  following  two  joints.  Halteres  blackish.  Wings  hyaline, 
the  anterior  veins  nearly  black,  costal  sections  equal,  the  third 
vein  attaining  the  distal  third  of  the  wing,  marginal  cell  very 
narrow,  radial  crossvein  much  before  the  middle  of  the  first 
vein  and  opposite  the  origin  of  the  straight  medial  vein  (m2), 
the  fourth  vein  (mi)  arising  beyond  the  center  of  the  wing  as 
an  imperfect  fork  from  the  second  medial,  cubital  veins  nearly 
straight. 

Length  3 mm.,  of  the  abdomen  2 mm. 

Laguna  Beach,  California.  Type  in  Pomona  College,  Clare- 
mont, California.  The  preceding  notes  were  made  from  a topo- 
type  from  the  collection  of  Dr.  J.  M.  Aldrich,  who  received  it 
from  Professor  C.  F.  Baker. 

COBOLDIA,  new  genus  ' 

Eyes  contiguous  on  the  front  from  the  ocelli  two-thirds  the 
distance  to  the  antennse  leaving  a hairy  space  above  the  an- 
tennae ; mouth-parts  vestigial ; antennae  shorter  than  the  head, 
lo-jointed,  the  terminal  joint  not  annulate  but  as  long  as  the 
three  preceding  together.  Mesonotum  closely  short-hairy.  Ab- 
domen elongate  oval,  comprising  eight  segments,  the  last  one 
with  small  genitalia.  Legs  short,  the  femora  only  moderately 
thickened,  the  tibiae  without  spurs  or  end-process,  tarsi  slender. 
Wings  vestigal,  rather  oval  in  outline,  the  costa  continued 
around  the  margin  although  weakened  beyond  the  apex,  the  first 
vein  ending  in  the  costa  at  one-third  the  wing-length,  the  second 
vein  ending  at  two-thirds,  the  third  and  fourth  veins  mutually 
curving  and  meeting  before  the  wing-apex  to  form  a large 
lanceolate  cell  extending  nearly  the  length  of  the  wing. 

Genotype,  the  following  species.  The  derivation  of  the  gen- 
eric name  is  from  Kobold,  a mischievous  goblin  of  German 
folk-lore  inhabiting  mines  and  caves. 

Coboldia  formicarum,  new  species  (Fig.  4) 

9 . Dark  brown  in  color,  the  tarsi  yellowish ; scutellum  with 
about  eight  marginal  setulse ; halteres  blackish ; wings  strongly 
infumated,  especially  the  middle  cell. 

Length  2 mm. 

A single  specimen  collected  by  Professor  A.  C.  Burrill,  July 

17 


28,  I9i4>  Madison,  Wisconsin.  The  species  is  myrmecophi- 
lous,  living  with  Camponotus  herculaneus,  var.  pennsylvanicus, 
the  type  specimen  having  been  taken  as  it  crawled  from  a popu- 
lous nest  of  this  species  in  a cottonwood  located  on  University 
Avenue  next  the  University  High  School. 

This  is  the  second  genus  of  the  Scatopsid^e  which  exhibits 
inability  to  fly.  The  other,  Thripomorpha,  was  described  in 
1905  by  Enderlein  for  an  apterous  species,  paliidicola,  occurring 
in  Germany.  In  the  wingless  genus  the  twelve  antennal  joints 
are  distinctly  differentiated. 

Species  of  Doubtful  Location 

The  following  three  species  were  described  by  Francis  Walker 
on  page  114  of  his  British  Museum  Fist,  from  material  col- 
lected at  St.  Martin’s  Falls,  Albany  River,  Hudson  Bay  region. 
Their  descriptions  are  too  vague  to  permit  assignment  to  genera 
and  the  species  must  remain  unrecognizable  until  a further 
study  is  made  of  the  types  in  the  British  Museum  , or  until  the 
collection  of  topotypes  will  give  some  clew  to  their  identity. 

Scatopse  nitens  Walker 

“Body  black,  shining;  abdomen  coppery  black;  feelers  black; 
wings  slightly  gray,  hardly  fringed;  fore  border  veins  tawny, 
the  rest  very  indistinct;  poisers  piceous.”  Length  2 mm. 

Scatopse  obscura  Walker 

“Body  black,  dimly  shining;  feelers  black;  legs  piceous ; 
wings  gray,  fringed;  veins  and  poisers  piceous.’’  Length  1.5 
mm. 

Scatopse  pusilla  Walker 

“Body  deep  black;  chest  shining,  somewhat  compressed;  feel- 
ers black,  stout,  subclavate ; legs  dark  piceous ; wings  colorless, 
fringed;  veins  pale;  poisers  piceous.’’  Length  i mm. 


18 


EXPLANATION  OP  FIGURES 

Plate  1 


Fig.  I 
Fig.  2 
Fig-  3 
Fig.  4 
Fig.  5 
Fig.  6 

Fig.  7 
Fig.  8 
Fig.  9 
Fig.  lo 
Fig.  II 
Fig.  12 
Fig.  13 
Fig.  14 
Fig.  15 
Fig.  16 
Fig.  17 
Fig.  18 
Fig.  19 
Fig.  20 
Fig.  21 


Rhegmoclema  atrata  Say.  Larva. 

Rhegmoclema  atrata  Say.  Pupa. 

Rhegmoclema  atrata  Say.  Adult  male. 

Coholdia  formicarum,  gen.  et  sp.  nov. 

Aspistes  herolinensis  Meigen. 

Psectrosciara  calif ornica  Cole. 

Plate  2 

Corynoscelis  eximia  Boheman.  Wing.  (Enderlein) 
Aspistes  sp.  Wing.  (Williston) 

Aspistes  analis  Kirby.  Antenna,  9 . (Aldrich,  del.) 
Bctaetia  clavipes  Loew.  Wing.  (Loew) 

Synneuron  annulipes  Lundstrcem.  Wing.  (Lundstrcem) 
Scatopse  notata  Linnaeus.  Wing. 

Aldrovandiella  halterata  Meigen.  Wing.  (Enderlein) 
Rhegmoclema  himaculata,  sp.  nov.  Wing. 
Rhegmoclema  aterrima,  sp.  nov.  Wing. 

Rhegmoclema  scrohicollis,  sp.  nov.  Wing. 
Reichertella  collaris,  sp.  nov.  Wing. 

Reichertella  uncinata,  sp.  nov.  Wing. 

Reichertella  femoralis  Meigen.  Wing. 
Swammerdamella  brevicornis  Meigen.  Wing. 
Psectrosciara  scatopsiformis  Enderlein.  Wing. 
(Enderlein) 


19 


PLATE  1. 


A.  L.  M.,  del. 


20 


PLATE  II. 


20 


21 


STATE  COLLEGE  OF  WASHINGTON 

AGRICULTURAL  EXPERIMENT  STATION 

PULLMAN,  WASHINGTON 


DIVISION  OF  BOTANY 


EVAPORATION  OF 
APPLES 

-By- 

J.  S.  CALDWELL 


BULLETIN  No.  131 
May,  1916 


A’.l  Bulletins  of  this  station  sent  free  to  citizens  of  the  State  on 
application  to  Director. 


BOARD  OF  CONTROL 


W.  A.  Ritz,  President Walla  Walla 

D.  S.  Troy,  Vice  President Chimacum 

E.  O.  Holland  (President  of  College)  Secretary  ex-officio.  .Pullman 

R.  C.  McCroskey Garfield 

James  C.  Cunningham Spokane 

E.  T.  Coman Spokane 


EXPERIMENT  STATION  STAFF 


Ira  D.  Cardiff,  Ph.  D. . 
O.  L.  Waller,  Ph.  M. . . 
A.  L.  Melander,  Sc.  D. 
O.  M.  Morris,  M.  S. . . . 
Geo.  Severance,  B.  S.. 

C.  C.  Thom,  M.  S 

A.  B.  Nystrom,  M.  S. . 
Geo.  A.  Olson,  M.  S. . . 
W.  T.  Shaw,  M.  S. . . . 

E.  G.  Schafer,  M.  S. . . 

Wm.  Hislop,  M.  S 

F.  D.  Heald,  Ph.  D 

C.  A.  Magoon,  A.  B.. 
J.  W.  Kalkus,  D.  V.  S. . 

M.  A.  McCall,  B.  S 

J.  S.  Caldwell,  Ph.  D. . 
M.  A.  Yothers,  M.  S. . 
Henry  F.  Holtz,  M.  S. . 

E.  F.  Gaines,  M.  S. . . . 

C.  B.  Sprague,  B.  S. . . 

D.  C.  George,  B.  S. . . . 

H.  M.  Woolman 

F.  W.  Allen,  M.  S. . . . 
A.  L.  Sherman,  B.  S. . . 
M.  B.  Boissevain,  B.  S. 


Director  and  Botanist 

Irrigation  Engineer 

Entomologist 

. Horticulturist 

Agriculturist 

Soil  Physicist 

Dairy  Husbandman 

Chemist 

Zoologist 

Agronomist 

Animal  Husbandman 

Plant  Pathologist 

Bacteriologist 

Veterinarian 

Dry  Land  Specialist 

By-products  Specialist 

. . . .Assistant  Entomologist 

. . . .Assistant  Soil  Physicist 

Acting  Cerealist 

. .Assistant  in  Horticulture 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
Assistant  Plant  Pathologist 
. . . Assistant  Horticulturist 

Assistant  Chemist 

. . .Assistant  in  Farm  Crops 


TA15I.K  OF  (OXTFXTS 


Page 


Summary  7 

Introduction  8 

Present  status  of  the  apple  industry  in  Oregon 9 


Acreage  of  bearing  and  non-bearing  trees,  yield  and  value 
of  crop,  1899-1914,  9;  Extent  of  losses  at  present  sustained 
by  the  industry,  11. 

Production  and  losses  of  fruits  other  than  apples 12 

Conditions  determining  the  sort  of  byproduct  plant  needed.  ...  13 
Requirements  for  success  of  cannery,  14;  of  evaporator,  15. 

Can  evaporated  apples  be  profitably  produced  in  Washington?.  . . 16 
Market  prices  of  evaporated  apples,  1908-1916,  17;  yield  of 
dry  fruit  per  bushel,  17;  costs  of  production,  18;  market- 
ing costs,  18. 

Marketing  the  evaporated  product 19 

Production  of  evaporated  apples  in  the  United  States, 
1899-19  09,  20;  exports  of  dried  fruits  to  purchasing  coun- 
tries, 1910-1915,  22;  percentages  taken  by  purchasing 
countries,  1910-1915,  21;  markets  open  to  Northwestern 
producer,  2 2. 


Review  of  the  literature  relating  to  evaporation 23 

Types  of  evaporators  28 

Only  such  types  of  evaporator  as  are  commercially  profit- 
able considered,  28;  sources  of  information,  30. 

The  kiln  evaporator 31 

Essential  features,  32;  uses  and  limitations,  33;  construc- 
tion of  buildings,  34;  advantages  of  fireproof  construction, 

34;  two-kiln  evaporator,  37;  plans  of  model  building,  38; 
construction  of  furnace  rooms,  39;  paring  room  and  epuip- 
ment,  40;  types  of  bleachers,  41;  care  of  drying  fruit,  44; 


construction  of  ventilators  of  kilns,  44;  four-kiln  evapora- 
tor, 46;  plans  of  building  and  arrangement  of  equipment, 

47;  conveyors  and  bins  for  apples,  48;  construction  of  work 
tables  and  of  conveyors  for  pared  apples,  49;  plants  of 
larger  capacity,  52;  floor  plans  and  equipment  of  eight- 
kiln  evaporator,  53. 

Heating  apparatus  52 

Types  of  furnace  available,  56;  arrangement  of  piping  of 
furnace,  57;  jacket-and-hopper  construction,  60. 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS — Contiiiiiecl 


Page 

The  kiln  floor,  materials  and  construction 61 

Steam  heated  kilns  62' 

Arrangement  of  heating  coils,  63;  advantages  and  dis- 
advantages of  employment  of  steam,  63. 

The  tunnel  evaporator 64 

Origin  of  tunnel  evaporator,  65;  essential  features  and  ad- 
vantages, 65;  plan  of  building,  67;  construction  of  tun- 
nels, 68;  the  furnace  room,  71;  the  furnace,  72;  construc- 
tion of  trays,  73;  operation  of  the  tunnel  evaporator,  74. 

The  Carson-Snyder  All-purpose  evaporator 76^ 

Origin,  76;  construction  of  drying  units,  79;  capacity  and 
time  required  for  drying,  81;  construction  of  furnaces,  82; 
advantages  of  the  method,  83;  suggested  modifications,  84. 

Evaporator  machinery  and  equipment 86 

Paring  machines,  86;  slicers,  88;  other  equipment,  89. 

Temperatures  at  which  drying  should  be  conducted 90 

Relation  of  temperature  of  air  to  moisture-carrying  capacity.  ...  92 
Artificial  means  of  increasing  circulation  of  air  in  the  evaporator  9 3 

Moisture  content  of  evaporated  apples 93^ 

Determining  when  the  fruit  is  properly  dried 95 

Grading  and  packing  the  dried  fruit 96 

Definition  of  various  grades  recognized  by  dealers,  96; 
sizes  of  containers  and  methods  of  packing,  97. 

Varieties  best  for  evaporation 97 

Yields  of  dry  fruit  from  different  varieties 

The  utilization  of  peels  and  cores 100 

Costs  of  construction  of  evaporator  buildings 100 

Detailed  estimates  of  cost  of  materials  and  construction 
for  two  types  of  kiln  evaporator,  101;  for  two  tunnel 
plants,  103;  Carson-Snyder  evaporator,  105. 

Cost  of  production  of  evaporated  apples 105 

Cost  of  labor  in  each  type  of  plant,  106;  cost  of  fuel,  108; 
supervision,  maintenance,  and  depreciation,  109;  total 
costs  of  production,  109. 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


Page 

Figure  I — Ground-floor  plan  of  two-kiln  evaporator 38 

Figure  II — Second-floor  plan  of  two-kiln  evaporator 39 

Figure  III — Power  bleacher  42 

Figrue  IV — Details  of  construction  of  ventilator 45 

Figure  V — Side  elevation  of  four-kiln  evaporator 46 

Figure  VI — Ground-floor  plan  of  four-kiln  evaporator 47 

Figure  VII — Second-floor  plan  of  four-kiln  evaporator 47 

Figure  VIII — Sectional  side  view  of  four-kiln  evaporator,  show- 
ing chutes  and  conveyors  for  apples 48 

Figure  IX — Sectional  end  view  of  four-kiln  evaporator,  show- 
ing chutes  and  conveyors  for  apples 49 

Figure  X — Sectional  view  of  evaporator  showing  arrangement 

of  paring  table  conveyors,  elevators,  bleacher,  and  slicer.  . 51 

Figure  XI — Side  elevation  of  eight-kiln  evaporator 53 

Figure  XII — Front  elevation  of  eight-kiln  evaporator 54 

Figure  XIII — First-floor  plan  of  eight  kiln  evaporator 54 

Figure  XIV — Second  floor  plan  of  eight-kiln  evaporator 56 

Figure  XV — Sectional  side  elevation  of  eight-kiln  evaporator.  . 57 

Figure  XVI — Systems  of  piping  for  furnace 58 

Figure  XVII — Sectional  view  of  kiln  showing  jacket-and-hopper 

around  furnace  59 

Figure  XVIII — Details  of  construction  of  jacket-and-hopper,  ...  60 

Figure  XIX — Sectional  side  view  of  tunnel  evaporator 69 

Figure  XX — Sectional  front  view,  Carson-Snyder  evaporator.  , . 7 8 

Figure  XXI — Detail  of  drying  chamber  of  Carson-Snyder  evap- 
orator   80 

Figure  XXII — An  efficient  and  durable  power  parer 85 

Figure  XXIII — A power  parer  with  automatic  trimming  at- 
tachment   87 

Figure  XXIV — A good  type  of  power  slicer.  89 


EVAPORATION  OF  APPLES 

By  J.  S.  CALDWELL 
Fruit  By-Products  Specialist 


SUMMARY 

Lowgrade  apples  and  surplus  apples  may  be  most  easily 
and  profitably  utilized  by  the  construction  of  evaporators. 

The  operation  of  small  evaporating  plants  of  the  “family 
drier”  type  is  not  profitable,  the  fruit  produced  invariably 
costing  more  than  its  market  value.  To  secure  a safe  margin 
of  profit,  an  evaporator  must  have  a capacity  of  not  less  than 
400  bushels  of  apples  per  day,  and  should  have  a complete 
equipment  of  modern  labor  saving  machinery. 

Three  types  of  evaporator,  the  kiln  or  hop  drier,  the  tunnel 
evaporator,  and  the  Carson-Snyder  or  all-purpose  evaporator, 
are  recommended  as  adapted  for  use  under  Washington  con- 
ditions.  Of  these  the  kiln  drier  is  slightly  the  cheapest,  both 
in  construction  and  in  operation.  It  gives  excellent  results 
vdth  apples  but  is  not  well  adapted  to  the  drying  of  peaches, 
berries,  or  prunes.  The  tunnel  and  all-purpose  evaporators 
are  more  expensive  to  build  and  operate,  but  will  dry  all 
classes  of  fruits  perfectly  satisfactorily.  If  other  fruits  than 
apples  are  available  in  considerable  quantities  for  evapora- 
tion, the  plant  should  be  of  the  second  or  third  type. 

Details  as  to  construction,  equipment,  and  operation  of 
each  of  these  three  types  of  evaporators,  with  estimates  of 
the  cost  of  construction  and  operation,  are  fully  given  in 
subsequent  pages  of  this  bulletin. 

One  bushel  of  C grade  or  good  cull  apples  will  yield  6% 
to  71/2  pounds  of  fruit  having  25  per  cent  moisture  content 
the  exact  yield  varying  with  variety  as  well  as  with  size  and 
quality  of  fruit. 


7 


The  total  cost  of  evaporation  per  bushel  of  apples  will  vary, 
for  the  three  plants  here  described,  from  15  to  16.5  cents, 
when  hand  labor  is  reduced  to  a minimum  through  the  em- 
ployment of  machinery. 

At  present  prices  for  evaporated  fruit,  the  evaporator  can 
pay  $8.00  to  $9.00  per  ton  for  apples,  discard  peels  and  cores 
and  yet  make  a fair  profit  upon  his  investment.  With  evapor- 
ated fruit  selling  at  8 cents  per  pound,  the  operator  will  not 
find  it  profitable  to  purchase  apples  for  drying  at  a price 
higher  than  $10.00  per  ton,  unless  peels  and  cores  can  be  util- 
ized in  the  manufacture  of  vinegar  and  jellies. 


INTRODUCTION 

The  present  publication  is  tlie  result  of  the  first  of  a series 
of  investigations  having  as  their  general  purpose  to  make 
possible  the  conservation  and  utilization  of  low-grade  and 
surplus  fruits  thru  the  introduction,  development,  and  im- 
provement of  methods  for  the  conversion  of  such  fruits  into 
marketable  products.  Since  the  losses  at  present  being  sus- 
tained by  the  apple  growers  of  the  state  thru  failure  to  utilize 
such  fruits  considerably  exceed  the  losses  in  all  other  branches, 
of  the  fruit  industry,  the  problem  of  the  utilization  of  low  grade 
and  cull  apples  was  logically  the  first  to  be  undertaken,  and 
this  paper  is  concerned  primarily  with  methods  for  the  evap- 
oration of  apples  by  means  of  artificial  heat  as  being  the 
most  feasible  and  generally  available  solution  of  the  problem. 
While  the  methods  described  are  for  the  most  part  equally 
applicable  to  the  evaporation  of  peaches,  berries,  and  prunes, 
no  attempt  is  made  to  deal  in  detail  with  the  handling  and 
drying  of  these  fruits.  The  writer  makes  no  claim  of  origin- 
ality for  the  material  presented;  all  the  methods  described 
are  in  general  and  successful  use  in  some  portion  of  the 
United  States,  and  it  is  the  function  of  this  bulletin  to  bring 
together  and  describe  such  well-tried  methods  in  some  detail 
rather  than  to  present  new  methods  Avhich  have  not  been  sub- 
jected to  the  test  of  practical  use. 


8 


PRESENT  STATUS  OF  THE  APPLE  INDUSTRY  IN 
WASHINGTON 

Of  all  the  varied  agricultural  industries  of  the  state  of 
Washington,  none  has  increased  in  importance  or  in  capital 
invested  more  rapidly  than  the  apple  industry.  From  a pro- 
duction of  728,978  bushels  in  1899,  which  placed  the  state 
twenty-sixth  in  the  list  of  states  in  the  production  of  apples, 
with  only  .41  per  cent  of  the  total  crop  to  her  credit,  she  had 
climbed  in  1913  to  sixth  place,  with  4.74  per  cent  of  the  entire 
crop  of  the  United  States,  or  6,900,000  bushels,  and  the  crops 
of  1914  and  1915  each  considerably  exceeded  7,000,000  bushels. 
Consequently,  the  last  fifteen  years  have  witnessed  an  in- 
crease of  practically  1000  per  cent  in  the  production  of  apples 
in  the  state.  In  how  far  the  value  of  the  crop  is  l)eing  affected 
by  this  rapid  increase  in  production  may  be  determined  upon 
consideration  of  the  fact  that  the  Census  of  1910  placed  the 
average  value  of  the  apple  crop  of  the  United  States  for  1909 
at  56.4  cents  per  bushel,  but  valued  that  of  Washington  at 
$1.09,  while  the  Bureau  of  Crop  Estimates^  estimated  the 
value  of  the  1915  crop  on  January  15,  1916,  at  86.1  cents  per 
bushel  for  the  United  States  as  a whole  and  at  95  cents  for 
Washington.  Thus  while  the  average  per  bushel  value  of  the 
crop  of  the  country  at  large  in  1915  was  152  per  cent  of  the  1909 
value,  the  value  of  the  Washington  crop  had  decreased  in 
1915  to  87  per  cent  of  the  1909  value.  This  very  material 
decrease  in  the  face  of  a general  increase  in  values  can  only 
be  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  facilities  for  marketing  the 
crop  are  not  keeping  pace  with  the  increase  in  production, 
and  that  a very  considerable  portion  of  the  crop  fails  to  yield 
a return  upon  the  investment  which  it  represents. 

That  the  situation  indicated  by  these  figures  is  destined  to 
become  very  much  more  serious  in  the  not  distant  future  is 
immediately  evident  when  the  figures  showing  the  acreage  of 
orchards  not  yet  come  into  bearing  are  considered.  In  1909, 
the  state  had  120,000  acres  of  apple  orchards,  with  3,009,337 

1.  Monthly  Crop  Report,  Bureau  of  Crop  Estimates,  U.  S.  Dept. 
Agric.,  Feb.  29,  1916,  page  14. 


9 


trees  of  bearing  age  and  4,862,702  trees  not  yet  of  bearing 
age.  On  January  1,  1913,  the  report  of  the  Commissioner  of 
Horticulture  1 showed  the  following  results  of  careful  estimates 
of  the  acreage  on  that  date  and  of  actual  counts  of  the  num- 
ber of  trees  on  January  1,  1912,  for  the  more  important 
fruits : — 


> 

o 

O 

13  fD 
CC 


dd 

CP 

►-S 

i-»  3 p 

=-l  CP 

O.  CP 

p ►-! 

P CP 

a CP 

H-i  !-  S’ 

a cc 

-5  cc 

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cr«!  p 

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cc 


Apples  217,840  4,510,336  5,707,566  1,029,331 

Pears  13,279  571,910  695,925  366,489 

Peaches  17,072  1,079,578  640,723  43,430 

Plums  and 

prunes  10,927  920,843  171,194  99.370 

Cherries  6,104  335,199  187,516  130,059 

A 'n’pi  Q o ri  H 

quinces  1,635  42,775  105,339  20,945 


pE 

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a p 

. CP  rt- 

V S 

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cc 

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AA'hen  there  is  considered  in  connection  with  these  figures 
the  fact  that  in  the  spring  of  1914  there  were  planted  in  the 
state  555,962  apple  trees,  100,659  pears,  51,381  plums  and 
prunes,  35,389  cherries,  and  21,231  quinces  and  apricots^, 
it  is  evident  that  planting  was  at  that  time  going  on  at  an 
enormously  rapid  rate,  and  that  as  a consequence  production 
is  destined  to  continue  increasing  rapidly  for  some  years  to 
come,  thru  the  coming  into  bearing  of  younger  orchards  as 
well  as  from  the  greater  age  of  the  older  ones.  Many  of  the 
younger  orchards,  by  reason  of  unfavorable  location,  lack  of 
care,  or  other  unfavorable  conditions,  will  never  come  into 
bearing,  but  it  is  evident  that  present  marketing  facilities  for 
fresh  fruit  will  soon  be  hopelessly  inadequate  to  handle  the 
great  volume  of  commercial  fruit,  and  that  unless  the  fruit 
interests  of  the  state  are  to  face  the  destruction  of  their  mar- 
kets, methods  for  converting  large  quantities  of  fruit  into 
stable  marketable  products  must  speedily  be  devised  and  put 
into  operation. 


1.  First  Biennial  Report,  Dept.  Agric.  of  Washington,  1913-14, 
pages  80-84;  41-47. 

10 


The  Extent  of  the  Losses  at  Present  Sustained  by  the  Apple 

Industry 

Under  the  rigid  system  of  grading  in  use  in  this  state,  a 
very  considerable  percentage  of  the  apple  crop  is  kept  out 
of  the  markets  by  defects  in  color  or  minor  imperfections 
which  in  no  degree  decrease  its  food  value.  In  sections  which 
give  their  orchards  insufficient  attention  or  in  regions  in 
which  the  attacks  of  insect  and  fungous  pests  are  especially 
severe,  C grade  or  cull  fruit  may  make  up  half  or  more  than 
half  of  the  total  product  of  the  orchards.  It  is  impossible  to 
estimate  the  percentage  of  the  crop^  which  fails  to  find  a mar- 
ket or  is  sold  at  a fraction  of  its  real  value  for  these  reasons; 
Mr.  Samuel  Fraser,  President  of  the  New  York  State  Evap- 
orated Fruit  Producers’  Association,  said  in  1912,  ‘‘Last 
year  the  equivalent  of  over  5,000,000  pounds  of  dried  apples 
were  wasted  in  the  orchards  of  Oregon  and  Washington  (this 
is  approximately  750,000  bushels  of  fresh  fruit)  and  at  the 
present  time  only  33  per  cent  of  the  fruit  grown  on  the  Pa- 
cific coast  is  shipped  in  boxes,  leaving  67  per  cent  of  the  crop 
which  must  be  utilized  in  some  other  way  or  else  allowed  to 
decay.  This  is  the  statement  of  one  of  the  best  informed 
fruit  growers  of  the  eastern  states,  and  while  it  is  probable 
that  his  figures  are  now  wide  of  the  mark  by  reason  of  im- 
provements in  the  cooperative  marketing  of  apples  which 
have  been  made  in  the  past  four  years,  estimates  by  a num- 
ber of  conservative  persons  who  are  thoroly  familiar  with 
conditions  in  the  leading  apple-producing  districts  of  the  state 
put  the  losses  in  their  respective  localities,  when  the  total 
production  in  both  commercial  and  small  home  orchards  is 
considered,  at  figures  ranging  from  10  to  35  per  cent.  That 
such  estimates  are  not  far  above  the  mark  is  indicated  by  some 
figures  from  the  state  of  New  York.  That  state,  with  her  ma- 
terially different  system  of  grading  and  her  large  home  market 
for  fresh  fruit,  puts  a very  much  larger  share  of  her  crop  on  the 
market  in  the  fresh  condition  than  does  Washington,  while  her 

1.  Fraser,  Samuel,  The  Dried  Fruit  Industry  in  the  United 
States,  The  Evaporator,  Vol.  4,  No.  12,  September,  1915,  pages  7-14, 


11 


large  number  of  canneries,  vinegar  and  cider  factories,  and 
other  by-products  plants,  absorb  proportionately  more  of  the 
crop  than  is  the  case  in  AVashington.  Despite  these  facts,  that 
state,  Avith  a total  yield  in  1909  of  25,409,324  bushels,  made  from 
culls  and  loAver  grades  33,652,115  pounds  of  eAmporated  apples, 
equivalent  to  4,900,000  bushels  of  fresh  fruit,  or  very  nearly 
20  per  cent  of  the  entire  crop.  While  Washington  markets 
a larger  proportion  of  her  commercial  crop  in  the  fresh  condi- 
tion, it  can  scarcely  be  doubted  that  Avith  proportionately 
feAver  by-product  plants,  she  loses  at  least  as  large  a share  of 
her  total  crop  as  these  comparisons  AA^ould  indicate. 

PRODUCTION  AND  LOSSES  OF  FRUITS  OTHER  THAN 

APPLES 

It  is  impossible  to  secure  figures  AAdiich  represent  the  present 
production  of  fruits  other  than  apples  in  the  state  of  Wash- 
ington, since  these  fruits  are  not  included  in  the  estimates 
made  by  the  Bureau  of  Crop  Estimates.  For  the  ten-year 
census  period  1900-1910,  the  production  of  plums  and  primes 
increased  350  per  cent;  of  pears,  297  per  cent;  of  apricots, 
105  per  cent;  of  cherries,  154  per  cent,  and  of  peaches  4 per 
cent  (since  this  year  Avas  generally  unfavorable  for  peaches, 
these  figures  do  not  represent  the  real  condition).  Since 
1910,  plantings  of  pears,  peaches,  and  cherries  have  been 
made  at  very  rapid  rates,  and  it  is  probable  that  for  these 
fruits  the  number  of  trees  three  years  of  age  or  less  is  equal 
to  the  AA^hole  number  of  bearing  trees,  hence  it  is- obvious 
that  the  next  feAv  years  AAnll  bring  a A^ery  large  increase  in  the 
Amlume  of  these  fruits  coming  on  the  market  That  such  in- 
crease AAull  be  attended  by  very  large  losses  is  inevitable 
unless  methods  of  converting  these  fruits  into  less  perishable 
form  at  the  centers  of  production  are  developed.  It  has  been 
shoAAml»2  that  Avhile  red  raspberries,  cherries,  and  prunes 

1.  Ramsey,  H.  J.,  Factors  Governing  the  Successful  Shipment  of 

Red  Raspberries  from  the  Puyallup  Valley.  U.  S.  Dept.  Agric.  Bull. 
274.  1915. 

2.  Ramsey,  H.  .7.,  The  Handling  and  Shipping  of  Fresh  Cherries 

and  Prunes  from  the  AVillamette  Valley.  U.  S.  Dept.  Agric.  Bull. 
331.  1916. 


can  be  shipped-  for  considerable  distances  in  the  fresh  condi- 
tion, good  results  can  be  secured  only  when  all  the  operations  of 
picking,  handling,  and  i)ack:ng  are  conducted  with  a degree 
of  care  which  it  is  practically  impossible  to  secure  in  ordinary 
commercial  orchard  practice.  Consequently,  shipment  to  dis- 
tant markets  in  the  fresh  condition  cannot  .be  regarded  as 
an  immediately  available  means  of  disposing  of  any  consider- 
able quantities  of  these  fruits  or  of  our  rapidly  increasing 
volume  of  loganberries  and  blackberries. 

It  is  evident  from  what  has  been  said  that  the  growers  of 
the  state  are  facing  a very  serious  situation.  No  industry 
can  have  any  reasonable  hope  of  success  so  long  as  10  to  25 
per  cent  of  the  annual  product  yields  no  returns  for  the  ex- 
penditure made  upon  it.  This  would  be  true  even  if  every 
year  were  one  of  maximum  production,  but  the  crop  is  one 
which  fluctuates  very  greatly  from  year  to  year,  and  a con- 
stant return  upon  the  investment  represented  by  an  orchard 
can  be  secured  only  when  every  portion  of  every  crop  is 
converted  into  marketable  products  returning  a margin  of 
profit.  Consequently,  the  problem  before  the  fruit  growers 
of  the  state  is  the  devising  of  means  for  converting  their 
highly  perishable  product  into  less  perishable  marketable 
forms. 

CONDITIONS  DETERMINING  THE  SORT  OF  BY-PRO- 
DUCT PLANT  NEEDED 

Since  there  are,  broadly  speaking,  two  general  methods  of 
preserving  perishable  foodstuffs,  by  sterilizing  with  heat  and 
sealing  or  by  reducing  the  moisture  content  to  a point  at 
which  growth  of  bacteria  and  fungi  cannot  occur,  the  by- 
products plant  must  be  either  a cannery  or  an  evaporator. 
If  it  is  to  utilize  fully  all  the  unmarketable  and  surplus  fruits 
of  its  district,  the  cannery  must  carry  on  such  related  activi- 
ties as  the  making  of  jams,  jellies,  marmalades,  preserves, 
fruit  butters,  and  cider  or  vinegar,  while  the  evaporating  plant 
may  advantageously  utilize  its  waste  by  manufacturing  vine- 
gar therefrom.  Consequently,  any  step  toward  utilization  of 


13 


lowgrade  fruit  in  a community  involves  first  of  all  a decision, 
as  to  whether  a cannery  or  an  evaporator  will  best  meet  the 
needs  of  the  particular  case.  A very  large  number  of  fac- 
tors, some  of  which  are  obvious  while  others  are  apt  to  be 
overlooked  by  persons  unfamiliar  with  the  operation  of  such 
plants,  need  to  be  ver}^  carefully  considered  in  making  such  a 
decision,  and  it  may  be  of  some  value  to  briefly  review  these 
before  going  further. 

The  writer  desires  to  say  frankly  that  his  study  of  condi- 
tions in  the  state  compel  him  to  regard  the  establishment  of 
a cannery,  either  by  an  individual  or  by  a cooperative  or- 
ganization, as  a very  doubtfully  profitable  undertaking  unless- 
the  conditions  are  favorable  to  a very  exceptional  degree. 
This  attitude  is,  I believe,  fully  justified  by  the  past  history 
of  canneries  in  general,  and  of  cooperative  canneries  in  par- 
ticular, in  the  Northwest. 

The  Report  of  the  Chief  of  the  Office  of  Markets  and  Rural 
Organization  for  1915  characterizes  the  business  of  the  co- 
operative cannery  as  a hazardous  one,  stating  that  more  than 
SO  per  cent  of  such  canneries  have  been  total  failuresi.  That 
office  has  just  completed  a survey  of  the  business  of  21  repre- 
sentative cooperative  canneries  in  Washington,  Oregon  and 
California,  and  has  brought  together  an  enormous  mass  of  data 
which  may  be  obtained  by  those  who  are  considering  the  estab- 
lishment of  such  a cannery  upon  request  made  to  the  Chief,. 
Office  of  Markets  and  Rural  Organization,  IJ.  S.  Department 
of  Agriculture,  AVashington,  D.  C. 

Briefly  stated,  success  in  the  establishment  and  operation 
of  a cannery  demands  ample  capital  for  installing  efficient 
modern  equipment  and  employing  well  trained  and  exper- 
ienced supervisors  of  the  technical  processes  involved,  as  well 
as  for  the  purchase  of  cans,  raw  materials,  and  labor,  and  for 
carrjung  the  manufactured  product  in  storage  until  favorable 
marketing  conditions  are  obtained.  There  must  be  available 
at  moderate  prices  an  ample  supply  not  only  of  fruits  but  of 

1.  Brand,  Charles  J.,  Report  of  the  Chief  of  the  Office  of  Mar- 
kets and  Rural  Organization,  Separate  from  Annual  Report  Dept. 
Agric.,  1915,  pp.  7-8. 


14 


vegetables  also,  in  order  that  overhead  charges  may  l)e  re- 
duced by  a long  working  season  at  full  capacity.  Transporta- 
tion facilities  must  be  good  and  rates  must  be  favorable, 
since  the  plant  will  purchase  its  cans  and  its  fuel  at  a dis- 
dance  and  will  have  to  transport  its  bulky  product  to  the 
markets.  Fuel  and  labor  must  be  obtainable  at  moderate 
rates.  Finally,  every  cannery  has  to  .solve  a marketing  prob- 
lem distinct  from  that  of  every  other  similar  concern.  Canned 
goods  of  the  better  grades  are  coming  to  be  sold  upon  the 
reputation  of  the  maker’s  name  or  brand  almost  to  the  same 
degree  as  are  smoking  tobaccos  or  breakfast  foods,  and  the 
new  cannery  must  be  financially  strong  enough  to  forego 
profits  while  it  is  establishing  a reputation  and  a market  for 
its  goods.  Lacking  any  of  these  conditions,  or  possessing 
them  but  lacking  a manager  who  combines  administrative 
ability  and  good  salesmanship  with  unlimited  energy,  the  new 
cannery  is  likely  to  prove  a worse  than  doubtful  investment. 

Comparatively  speaking,  the  evaporating  plant  has  many 
advantages  over  the  cannery.  The  initial  cost  of  building 
and  ecpiipment  necessary  to  handle  a given  volume  of  material 
is  much  less,  the  machinery  is  less  costly  and  depreciates  much 
less  rapidly.  The  employment  of  a technicall}^  trained,  high- 
salaried  supervisor  is  not  necessary.  Therefore,  the  fixed 
charges  (interest  on  investment,  depreciation,  insurance,  .sup- 
ervision) are  proportionately  loAver,  and  many  of  the  best 
evaporators  of  the  Eastern  apple  districts  make  a profit  de- 
spite the  fact  that  they  dry  nothing  but  apples,  hence  operate 
only  about  60  days  each  year.  Under  the  conditions  prevail- 
ing in  Washington  this  would  scarcely  be  possible,  but  there 
are  few  districts  in  the  state  in  which  an  evaporator  would 
not  have  either  peaches,  berries  or  prunes,  in  some  quantity, 
to  lengthen  its  operating  season.  While  the  evaporator  is 
by  no  means  independent  of  facilities  for  transportation,  it 
has  the  enormous  advantage  that  it  produces  a concentrated 
product  which  can  be  transported  far  more  cheaply  than  either 
fresh  fruit  or  canned  goods ; which  requires  no  outlay  for 
expensive  containers,  and  which  can  be  stored  almost  indefi- 


15 


nitely,  under  proper  conditions,  in  relatively  small  space. 
Finally,  the  product  is  one  which  is  readily  examined  and 
graded,  hence  every  lot  goes  on  the  market  at  the  price  to 
which  its  quality  entitles  it,  and  does  not  depend  upon  brand 
name  or  previously  established  reputation  for  its  sale. 

What  has  just,  been  said  must  not  be  misinterpreted:  the 
business  of  evaporation  is  one  which  has  its  hazards,  the  mar- 
gin of  profit  is  low,  and  the  poorly  managed,  badly  located 
plant  will  fail  no  less  certainly  than  if  it  were  an  improperly 
located,  badly  managed  cannery.  But  given  an  assured 
and  adequate  supply  of  fruit  of  good  quality  at  moderate 
prices,  a modern  equipment  of  efficient,  labor-saving  ma- 
chinery, and  capable  oversight  and  management,  an  evap- 
orating plant  has  more  than  a fair  chance  of  realizing  a rea- 
sonable return  upon  the  investment  anywhere  in  the  North- 
west. 

CAN  COMMERCIAL  EVAPORATED  APPLES  BE  PROFIT- 
ABLY PRODUCED  IN  WASHINGTON? 

In  order  to  answer  this  question,  the  range  of  market  prices 
for  evaporated  apples  for  some  years  past,  the  present  cost 
of  production  and  marketing,  the  probable  cost  of  fresh  fruit 
per  bushel,  and  the  average  yield  of  dry  stock  therefrom  must 
be  considered.  Some  of  these  matters  receive  detailed  dis- 
cussion in  subsquent  pagos,  but  the  essential  facts  may  be 
summarized  here. 

Table  I gives  the  wholesale  prices  per  pound  at  which  prime 
evaporated  apples,  packed  in  standard  50-pound  boxes,  were 
selling  in  car  lots  on  the  New  York  market  on  January  1, 
April  1,  August  1,  and  November  1 of  each  year  since  1908. 
It  may  be  noted  that  for  any  given  year  the  August  quota- 
tions represent  speculative  offers  for  November  or  December 
deliveries  and  are  based  upon  the  crop  condition  and  prob- 
able production,  the  November  and  January  quotations  rep- 
resent the  prices  at  which  the  great  bulk  of  the  product  is 
actually  sold,  while  the  April  figures  represent  prices  at  which 
cold-storage  stocks  and  the  last  small  holdings  in  makers’ 
hands  are  cleared  up,  and  are  to  some  extent  determined  by 


16 


the  prospects  for  the  next  crop.  Figures  for  the  New  York 
market  were  selected  for  the  reason  that  prices  there  set 
determine  those  paid  thruout  the  country.  Prices  offered  for 
choice  and  fancj^  stock  regularly  range  % to  1%  cent  per 
pound  above  the  prices  quoted  for  prime. 

TABLE  I 

Wholesale  Prices  Per  Pound  of  Prime  Evaporated  Apples  On 
The  New  York  Market,  1909-1916. 

Jan.  1 April  1 Aug.  1 Nov.  1 


cts.  cts.  cts.  cts. 

1909  6%  7 8 8 % 

1910  71/2  6%  71/2  8t4 

1911  10%  121/2  131/2  10 

1912  8 1/2  71/2  7 6 

1913  5%  51/2  6%  71/2 

1914  8 1/4  91/2  6 51/2 

1915  5 78  7%  7%  71/4 

1916  7%  6 


For  the  corresponding  period,  prices  quoted  by  the  Seattle 
and  Spokane  markets  for  prime  evaporated  apples  are  con- 
sistently 11/2  to  2 cents  per  pound  higher  than  the  New  York 
market,  as  on  April  1st,  1916,  when  the  New  York  quotation 
for  prime  was  6 cents,  that  of  Seattle  and  Portland  8 cents. 
Consequently,  the  price  paid  for  prime  boxed  evaporated  ap- 
ples, wholesale  in  the  Washington  cities  has  at  no  time  within 
the  past  eight  years  ranged  below  7%  cents  in  so  far  as  the 
avaliable  records  show. 

From  100  pounds  of  C grade  or  good  culls,  the  evaporator 
may  conservatively  expect  to  secure  12%  to  141/2  pounds  of 
fruit  dried  to  a moisture  content  of  25  per  cent,  the  exact 
amount  varying  not  only  with  the  quality  but  also  with  the 
variety.  Of  this  yield,  20  per  cent  should  be  of  such  char- 
acter as  to  grade  ‘‘choice”  or  “fancy”  and  sell  at  a price 
ICo  cents  a pound  above  prime;  at  least  70  per  cent  will  grade 
as  prime,  and  the  remaining  10  per  cent  will  consist  of  broken 
or  imperfectly  cored  rings  which  will  sell  as  middling  at  a 
price  % or  1 cent  per  pound  below  prime.  Considering  the 
whole  output  as  prime,  which  is  conservative  in  view  of  the 
fact  that  the  increased  price  received  for  the  choice  stock  will 


17 


more  than  offset  the  lower  returns  for  the  middling,  and  tak- 
ing the  lowest  yields  per  bushel  stated  above  together  with 
the  lowest  price  reached  on  the  Washington  market  within 
the  past  eight  years,  the  evaporator  would  get  from  100  pounds 
of  apples  I2V2  pounds  of  dry  fruit  which  at  7%  cents  would 
yield  85.9  cents,  or  42.9  cents  per  bushel  for  the  fresh  fruit. 

The  cost  of  production  of  evaporated  fruit  With  the  types  of 
evaporators  to  be  described,  as  shown  in  detail  on  subsequent 
pages,  will  range  from  15  to  16.5  cents  per  bushel.  Since 
the  cost  of  labor  and  fuel  will  vary  considerably  in  different 
localities,  the  higher  figure  may  be  taken.  Deducting  16.5 
cents  from  42.9  cents,  there  remain  26.15  cents  out  of  which 
the  operator  must  purchase  his  apples,  pay  the  broker’s  com- 
missions and  shipping  charges"^  on  the  dry  product,  and  make 
his  profit.  An  average  price  of  $8.00  to  $8.50  a ton,  or  20 
to  21 V4  cents  a bushel,  could  safely  be  paid  for  apples  with 
a fair  margin  of  profit,  even  if  no  profitable  disposition  could 
be  made  of  peels  and  cores,  and  if  no  windfalls  and  immature 
fruits,  which  make  a satisfactory  product  if  dried  to  a lower 
water  content  than  mature  stock,  were  used. 

The  above  figures  are  conservative,  since  the  yield  per 
bushel  is  figured  at  the  minimum,  the  cost  of  production  at 
the  highest  figures  given,  it  is  assumed  that  no  returns 
are  received  from  peels  and  cores,  and  the  price  of  the  dry 
stock  is  set  at  the  lowest  point  reached  within  eight  years. 
This  has  been  purposely  done,  in  order  that  persons  interested 
in  the  subject  may  see  exactly  what  the  possibilities  of  the 

*In  this  connection  attention  may  be  called  to  the  fact  that  the 
Northwest  By-products  Board  is  organizing  an  evaporated  apple 
sales  agency  which  will  undertake  the  grading  and  marketing  of 
all  evaporated  apples  produced  in  the  North  Pacific  states  at  a uni- 
form charge  of  5 per  cent  of  the  sale  price  of  the  fruit.  This  serv- 
ice will  reach  a wider  market  than  any  with  which  the  individual 
operator  could  hope  to  secure  contact  through  his  own  efforts,  and 
the  charge  named  is  certainly  less  than  it  would  cost  most  individ- 
uals to  market  their  product.  Consequently,  persons  or  communities 
establishing  evaporators  should  by  all  means  avail  themselves  of  the 
services  of  this  sales  agency,  as  they  will  thereby  secure  better  prices, 
a lower  cost  for  the  service  given  them,  and  will  at  the  same  time 
assist  to  maintain  and  stabilize  a market  which  would  become  de- 
moralized under  attem])ts  to  dispose  of  the  product  without  the  aid 
of  such  an  agency. 


IS 


business,  under  the  least  favorable  conditions  of  production 
and  with  lowest  prices  on  the  market,  really  are.  That  the 
figures  are  conservative  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  several  com- 
mercial evaporators  in  Oregon  and  Washington,  with  incom- 
plete equipment  and  consequently  with  higher  costs  of  pro- 
duction than  those  here  given,  are  operating  at  a profit  after 
paying  an  average  price  of  $10.00  per  ton  for  their  apples. 

It  is  evident  from  these  figures  that  the  evaporation  of 
apples  which  can  find  a ready  market  in  the  fresh  condition 
at  a price  of  30  cents  or  more  per  bushel  will  not  be  profital)le. 
That  community  which  can  dispose  of  practically  all  its  pro- 
duct at  prices  above  $10.00  a ton  will  not  be  aided  by  an 
evaporator.  But  any  community  which  has  annually  10,000 
bushels  or  more  of  apples  which  cannot  be  sold  at  that  price, 
or  which  decay  in  the  orchards  or  are  fed  to  animals  in  default 
of  a market  at  any  price,  will  be  enabled  to  turn  this  loss  into 
a source  of  revenue  through  the  construction  of  an  evaporator. 

MARKETING  THE  EVAPORATED  PRODUCT 

The  question,  “Can  the  Northwest  find  a ready  market  for 
any  considerable  volume  of  evaporated  fruits?”  is  one  which 
may  properly  be  asked  as  soon  as  evaporation  begins  to  be 
seriously  considered  as  a possible  means  of  utilizing  any  con- 
siderable amount  of  fruit.  While  it  is.  beyond  the  province 
of  this  paper  to  enter  into  a detailed  discussion  of  the  market- 
ing problem,  some  pertinent  facts  relating  to  the  question 
of  production  and  consumption  of  evaporated  fruits  may  be 
briefly  stated. 

Table  II  shows  the  total  production  of  evaporated  apples 
in  the  United  States  and  in  each  of  the  chief  producing  states 
for  the  years  1899,  1904  and  1909.  The  striking  fact  shown 
by  these  figures  is  immediately  obvious;  the  production  of 
evaporated  apples  is  becoming  centralized  in  New  York  and 
California,  while  the  output  of  the  apple  producing  states  of 
the  interior  is  remaining  stationary  or  actually  decreasing. 
AYhile  accurate  figures  showing  production  in  years  subsequent 
to  1909  in  the  various  states  are  not  obtainable,  all  estimates 


19 


TABLE  II 


Production  of  Evaporated  Apples,  United  States,  1899-1909 


1889  1904  1909 

pounds  pounds  pounds 

United  States  33,212,309  40,737,089  44,568,244 

New  York  21,542,897  31,458,702  33,652,115 

Michigan  4,418,453  3,632,781  1,982,611 

Illinois 1,424,149  1,518,145  202,100 

Arkansas 1,402,000  3,001,003  1,571,945 

Pennsylvania  570,490  218,454  293,750 

California 3,087,220  811,254  6,860,170 

Oregon 37,250  50,000  4,433 

All  other  states  729,850  46,750  1,000 


agree  in  indicating  that  the  same  general  condition  holds, 
that  the  interior  states  are  not  materially  increasing  their 
contributions  to  the  total  volume  of  evaporated  apples,  that 
New  York  produces  practically  75  per  cent  of  the  average 
annual  total  production,  while  California,  which  now  produces 
annually  8,000,000  or  9,000,000  pounds,  furnishes  approximate- 
ly half  of  the  remainder.  Therefore,  in  so  far  as  markets 
within  the  boundaries  of  the  United  States  are  concerned, 
they  must  be  supplied  by  shipment  from  centers  of  production 
at  the  northeastern  edge  of  the  Atlantic  border  or  near  the 
southeastern  extremity  of  the  Pacific  seaboard.  After  home 
needs  are  supplied,  Washington  producers  may  hope  to  suc- 
cessfully compete  for  the  business  of  supplying  consumers  in 
a certain  portion  of-  the  United  States,  while  their  geographic 
position  gives  them  a practical  monopoly  of  business  with 
Alaska  and  portions  of  Canada,  and  enables  them  to  compete 
on  equal  terms  for  business  in  South  and  Central  America, 
which  are  already  considerable  purchasers  of  evaporated  fruits 
and  will  enormously  increase  their  takings  when  assured  that 
they  can  purchase  a product  dry  enough  to  keep  under  their 
climatic  conditions. 

As  regards  the  distribution  to  foreign  markets,  the  war  in 
Europe  has  completely  transformed  the  situation.  Table  III 
shows  the  normal  distribution  of  American  evaporated  fruits, 
in  so  far  as  statistics  are  available,  to  consuming  foreign  coun- 
tries for  the  five  year  period  ending  with  1914  and  for  com- 
parison with  this  the  percentages  taken  by  these  countries 


20 


TABLE  nil 


Distribution  of  American  Evaporated  Apples  Exported,  for 
the  Five-Year  Period  1910-1914  and  for  1915. 


Pet.  taken 

Pet.  taken 

1910-14 

1915 

Germany  

49.7 

.2  5 

Netherlands 

27.4 

12.2 

Belgium 

5.5 

. 0.0 

Denmark  

3.7 

45.0 

United  Kingdom 

3.4 

12.0 

Sv/eden 

3.2 

25.4 

Norway 

0.9 

4.5 

All  other  countries  

6.2 

.65 

during  the  year  1915,  under  war  conditions.  Germany,  which 
has  been  since  1895  our  leading  purchaser  of  evaporated  ap- 
ples, taking  nearly  one-half  the  total  exports  and  reselling  a 
considerable  share  of  her  takings  to  Russia  and  the  Scandi- 
navian countries,  is  of  course,  no  longer  a direct  buyer.  In- 
stead, Denmark  and  Sweden  have  become  purchasers  of  nearly 
70  per  cent  of  our  exported  apples,  most  of  which  are  of  course 
resold  to  countries  now  at  war.  The  takings  of  the  United 
Kingdom  show  almost  a fourfold  increase,  while  those  of  the 
Netherlands  are  reduced  to  less  than  one-half  of  their  former 
volume. 

Table  IV  shows  in  detail  the  exports  of  evaporated  apples, 
prunes,  apricots  and  peaches  to  the  various  purchasing  coun- 
tries for  the  years  1912,  1913,  1914,  and  1915.  Notwithstand- 
ing the  elimination  of  Germany  from  the  list  of  direct  pur- 
chasers, our  exports  of  dried  fruits  as  a whole  increased,  for 
the  year  1915,  21  per  cent  over  the  five-year  average  for  191U- 
1914.  Consequently  the  depression  of  the  markets  for  the 
past  eighteen  months  has  been  due  largely  to  manipulation, 
not  to  failure  of  the  rest  of  the  world  to  take  their  normal 
share  of  the  fruit  produced. 

The  close  of  the  war  and  the  resulting  gradual  return  to 
normal  conditions  will  witness  material  changes  in  the  avenues 
of  distribution  of  American  evaporated  fruits,  as  of  other 
products.  The  great  orchard  regions  of  northern  France  and 

1.  Figures  compiled  from  Monthly  Summary  of  Foreign  Com- 
merce of  the  United  States  for  the  years  1910  to  1915  inclusive. 


21 


of  Austria  have  been  almost  totally  destroyed,  and  will  no 
longer  largely  supply  the  commercial  apple  markets  of  Europe 
instead,  these  countries  will  become  purchasers  of  both  fresh 
and  dried  fruits  produced  in  the  United  States.  Russia  and 
the  Scandinavian  countries  will  be  larger  purchasers  than  here- 
tofore, and  will  deal  with  the  producers  instead  of  buying  thru 
Germany.  Switzerland  and  Australia  are  coming  into  the 
markets  for  larger  quantities  of  apples  than  heretofore,  and 
there  is  every  indication  that  there  is  to  be  an  adequate  market 
for  a constantly  increasing  volume  of  American  evaporated 
fruits. 

TABLE  IV2 


Exports  of  Evaporated  Fruits,  1912-1915 


Apples — 

1912 

1913 

1914 

1915 

pounds 

pounds 

pounds 

pounds 

G#  rmany 

,17,208,305 

19,257,477 

8,502,178 

Netherlands  . . . . 

11,201,345 

10,669,483 

6,325,337 

4,238,894 

Other  countries.  . 

, 9,338,542 

8,807,505 

16,200,036 

29,666,714 

Totals 

.37,748,192 

38,734,465 

31,027,551 

33,905.608 

Prunes — 

France  

10,903,918 

14,461,489 

839,807 

1,885,738 

Germany 

,33,278,279 

33,834,016 

2,941,801 

United  Kingdom . 

7,808,016 

11,238,160 

7,248,311 

15,677,907 

Other  Europe  . . 

.26,561,769 

19,700,649 

11,557,292 

18,572,416 

Canada  

11,355,414 

12,223,800 

9,896,534 

10,941,789 

All  other  c’ntries  2,731,069 

2,886,043 

2,744,992 

3,897,787 

Totals 

,92,638,465 

94,344,157 

35,228,737 

50,775,637 

Apricots — 

France  

3,963,415 

3,288,422 

1,249,970 

2,937,203 

Germany 

, 8,557,142 

4,022,052 

561,760 

Netherlands  . . . . 

3,654,380 

2,173,795 

848,820 

2,043,865 

United  Kingdom . 

10,579,264 

7,143,821 

7,121,170 

7,062,390 

Other  countries.  . 

5,771,220 

4,697,438 

6,759,502 

13,704,142 

Totals 

32,525,421 

21,325,528 

16,541,222 

25,747,600 

Peaches — 

To  all  c’ntries  (not  on  record) 

4,609,867 

5,723,904 

18,720,272 

1.  H.  W.  Collingwood,  former  editor  Rural  New  Yorker,  in  inter- 
view published  in  The  Evaporator,  Vol.  8,  No.  2,  November,  1915, 
p.  14. 

2.  Figures  for  years  1912-1914  from  Monthly  Summary  of  For- 
eign Commerce  of  the  United  States  for  December,  1914,  pp.  490- 
491;  those  for  1915  from  same  publication  for  December,  1915, 
■page  31. 


22 


REVIEW  OF  THE  LITERATURE  RELATING  TO 
EVAPORATION 

While  the  evaporation  of  apples  and  berries  has  long  been 
an  established  industry  in  certain  sections  of  the  United  States, 
and  the  evaporation  of  prunes  has  in  recent  years  become  a 
business  of  very  considerable  magnitude,  the  literature  deal- 
ing with  the  subject  of  evaporation  is  surprisingly  small  in 
amount.  The  methods  in  use  today  have  been  gradually  de- 
veloped by  practical  evaporator  operators  and  have  never  been 
subjected  to  systematic  scientific  investigation  with  a view 
to  their  improvement  and  increase  in  efficiency.  Consequently 
such  papers  as  deal  with  the  subject,  while  they  are  for  the 
most  part  publications  of  various  experiment  stations,  are  con- 
fined to  descriptions  of  prevailing  methods  in  use,  with  very 
few  suggestions  for  their  improvement.  Since  old  methods 
are  continually  undergoing  modifications  or  being  entirely  re- 
placed by  more  efficient  ones,  most  of  these  descriptions  have 
now  little  more  than  historical  value,  because  they  apply  to 
machines  and  processes  which  have  become  obsolete.  This 
brief  review  is  inserted  here  in  the  hope  that  is  may  be  of 
service  to  those  desiring  to  acquaint  themselves  with  the  ex- 
isting literature. 

In  1895,  Professor  L.  H.  Bailey  of  Cornell  Universityl,  in 
a bulletin  on  the  evaporation  of  raspberries,  outlined  the  his- 
tory of  the  evaporator  industry  in  Western  New  York,  briefly 
described  the  first  small  portable  evaporators  used,  and  de- 
voted a few  paragraphs  to  steam  and  kiln  driers.  The  paper 
is  chiefly  devoted  to  a detailed  description  of  the  then  widely 
used  Culver-Cassidy  tower  or  stack  evaporator,  which  has  since 
gone  wholly  out  of  use  in  New  York,  altho  it  is  still  em- 
ployed in  a modified  form  in  California.  Two  years  later. 
Professor  U.  P.  Hedrick  of  the  Oregon  Agricultural  Experi- 
ment Station,  in  a comprehensive  bulletin  of  that  station  on 
the  cultivation  and  caring  of  prunes, 2 devoted  some  twenty 

1.  Bailey,  L.  H.,  Evaporated  Raspberries  in  Western  New  York, 
Bull.  100,  Cornell  Univ.  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.,  40  pp.  1895. 

2.  Hedrick,  U.  P.,  Prunes  in  Oregon,  Bull.  4 5,  Oregon  Agric.  Exp. 
Sta.,  127  pp.  1897. 


23 


pages  to  descriptions  of  six  evaporating  plants  used  in  the 
evaporation  of  prunes.  Only  two  of  these,  the  Allen  and  the 
Carson,  have  survived  the  test  of  time  and  have  done  so  only 
thru  extensive  modification  and  improvement.  Balmert 
in  a bulletin  on  prunes  issued  l)y  the  AVashington  Station  in 
1899,  has  described  a number  of  evaporators,  including  sev- 
eral not  mentioned  by  Hedrick,  but  diligent  inquiry  has  failed 
to  discover  an  operator  Avho  is  using  one  of  them  at  the  present 
time. 

AhvoocH,  in  a paper  appearing  in  1895,  described  a small 
steam  evaporator  devised  by  himself,  which  appears  to  have 
.very  little  to  differentiate  it  from  a number  of  others  put  on 
the  market  about  that  time.  Alwood’s  experimental  machine 
turned  out  a product  of  excellent  quality  but  the  cost  of  con- 
struction and  operation  was  so  high  as  to  prohibit  its  use  com- 
mercially, and  the  author  abandoned  the  work  without  ob- 
taining any  results  of  practical  value. ^ 

Farmers  Bulletin  218,  by  L.  C.  Corbett^,  is  devoted  pri- 
marily to  directions  for  the  culture  of  raspberries,  but  takes 
up  also  methods  of  evaporation.  Three  types  of  evaporators, 
all  derived  by  slight  modifications  from  types  generally  in  use 
for  the  evaporation  of  apples,  are  rather  briefly-  described. 
These  are  the  shaft  or  flue  evaporator,  identical  in  general 
construction  and  operation  with  the  tower  evaporators  em- 
ployed for  apples,  the  cabinet  evaporator,  and  the  hop-kihi 
drier,  which  is  the  kiln  universally  used  in  the  New  York  apple 
districts.  Some  general  facts  as  to  construction  are  given 
and  the  relative  merits  of  the  different  types  for  use  in  drying 
raspberries  are  briefly  discussed,  but  no  estimates  of  cost  of 
construction  or  of  operation  are  given. 


1.  Balmer,  .1.  A.,  Prunes,  Bull.  38,  Washington  Agric.  Exp.  Sta., 
44  pp.  1899. 

2.  Ahvood.  Wm.  B.,  Evaporating  Apples,  Bull.  4 8,  Va.  Agric.  Exp. 
Sta.,  16  pp.  1895. 

3.  Alwood,  Wm.  B.,  The  Utilization  of  Unmerchantable  Apples, 
Bull.  57,  Va.  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.,  16  pp.,  1895. 

4.  Corbett,  L.  C.,  Raspberries.  U.  S.  Dept.  Agric.  Farmers  Bull. 
213,  38  pp  1905. 


24 


The  only  paper  dealing  in  ain^  detail  with  all  phases  of  the 
•construction  and  operation  of  evaporators  is  that  of  Gouldl. 
The  three  types  of  evaporators  just  named  are  described  there- 
in in  considerably  greater  detail  than  in  Corbett’s  paper, 
especially  in  the  case  of  the  kiln  evaporator.  In  addition, 
evaporator  appliances  and  machinery,  paring  machines,  slieers, 
bleachers,  heating  apparatus,  the  selection  and  preparation  of 
fruit  for  drying,  temperatures  employed,  time  for  drying, 
amount  of  fuel  needed,  and  methods  of  packing  the  dry  pro- 
duct are  among  the  topics  receiving  attention.  The  paper  is 
hy  far  the  most  satisfactory  account  of  .the  industry  in  print, 
.and  the  writer  acknowledges  liberal  use  of  the  material  con- 
tained in  it  in  the  preparation  of  this  paper. 

Other  papers  dealing  with  some  phase  of  the  industry  are 
those  of  Warren^,  Brackett^,  Fraser^,  Dosch^,  and  Allen^, 
The  first  named  is  a veiw^  brief  popular  statement  of 
methods  which  describes  a few  small  home  or  family  driers, 
while  Brackett’s  paper  is  a purely  general  discussion  of  drying 
5,nd  canning.  Professor  Fraser’s  paper  reviews  in  some  detail 
the  development  of  the  dried  fruit  industry  in  the  various 
states  concerned,  and  points  out  the  need  of  scientific  study 
looking  toward  the  improvement  of  the  product.  The  papers 
of  Dosch  and  of  Allen  are  concerned  with  the  evaporation  of 
prunes  and  are  devoted  to  criticisms  of  incorrect  practices 
rather  than  to  systematic  descriptions  of  drying  plants  or  di- 
rections for  their  operation. 


1.  Gould,  H.  P.,  Evaporation  of  Apples,'  U.  S.  Dept.  Agric.  Farm- 
•ers  Bull.  291,  38  pp.  1907,  re-issued  without  change,  1915. 

2.  Warren,  G.  F.,  Evaporating  as  a home  industry  in  the  United 
States,  Bailey’s  Cyclopedia  of  American  Agriculture,  4th  ed,  Vol.  2, 
pp.  174-177,  1912. 

3.  Brackett,  G.  B.,  Utilizing  Surplus  Fruit,  Yearbook,  Dept,  of 
Agric.,  1888,  pp.  309-317. 

4.  Fraser,  Samuel,  The  Dried  Fruit  Industry  in  the  United  States,, 
The  Evaporator,  Vol.  4,  No.  12,  pp,  7-14,  September,  1912. 

5.  Dosch,  Henry  E.,  Fruit  Evaporation,  Fifth  Biennial  Report 
Board  of  Horticulture  of  Oregon,  pp,  440-446,  1898. 

6.  Allen,  R.  D.,  The  Prune  and  the  Methods  of  Evaporation,  Fifth 
Biennial  Report  Board  of  Horticulture  of  Oregon,  pp.  485-493,  1898, 


Two  recent  papers^-^  from  the  Oregon  Agricultural  Ex- 
periment Station  deal  to  some  extent  with  the  evaporation  of 
fruits,  in  connection  with  a general  discussion  of  means  of 
utilizing  surplus  fruits.  The  first  of  these  papers  devotes  four 
pages  to  a general  outline  of  the  process  of  evaporation  in 
kiln  driers,  the  second  contains  plans  of  a model  tunnel  evap- 
orator with  a discussion  of  methods  of  picking,  handling  and 
drying  loganberries  and  a statement  of  results  of  experiments 
with  evaporation  at  various  temperatures.  Brown  and  Brad- 
ford of  the  Oregon  Station,  in  a paper  on  the  drying  of  prunes^ 
briefly  describe  the  stack,  tunnel  and  .Tory  driers.  Their  paper 
also  discusses  methods  of  dipping  and  bleaching,  temperatures 
for  drying,  and  cost  of  the  process. 

In  a pul)lication  received  while  this  bulletin  is  passing  thru 
the  press,  FarrelO  has  described  and  given  full  plans  for  the 
construction  of  a small  cabinet  evaporator  devised  by  himself. 
The  plan  combines  some  features  of  the  older  family  or  cook- 
stove  driers  with  others  derived  from  the  tunnel  evaporator. 
The  capacity  of  the  plant  is  30  to  50  bushels  per  day  when  oper- 
ated continuously,  which  would  make  its  cost  of  operation  pro- 
hibitive under  the  conditions  prevailing  in  Washington. 

Brannt’s  comprehensive  treatise  on  the  manufacture  of  vine- 
gar 5 contains  a rather  full  description,  with  figures,  of  two 
tower  evaporators  called  from  their  inventors  the  Alden  and 
the  Williams.  The  description  of  the  kiln  evaporator  given 
is  cpioted  bodily  from  the  paper  by  Gould  already  cited.  Some 
general  statements  as  to  the  methods  of  preparing  apples  and 
vegetables  for  evaporation  are  given,  but  the  whole  account 

1.  Lewis,  C.  L.,  and  Brown,  W.  S.,  Fruit  and  Vegetable  By-Pro- 
ducts, Oregon  Agric.  College  Extension  Service,  College  Bull.  12  8, 
pp.  48,  1914. 

2.  Lewis,  C.  I.,  and  Brown,  F.  R.,  Loganberry  By-Products.  Ore- 
gon Agric.  Exp.  Sta.,  Bull.  117,  32  pp.,  1914. 

3.  Brown,  F.  R.,  and  Bradford,  F.  C.,  The  Drying  of  Prunes.  Bi- 
ennial Crop  Pest  and  Horticultural  Report,  Oregon  Agric.  Expt.  Sta- 
tion, 1911-1912,  pp.  51-58. 

4 Farrell,  .T.,  Apple  Drying.  Journal  of  the  Board  of  Agriculture 
Victoria,  Australia,  16:196-211.  1916. 

5.  Brannt,  Wm.  T.,  A Practical  Teatise  on  the  Manufacture  of 
Vinegar,  3rd  Ed.,  Philadelphia,  1914,  pp.  465-486. 


26 


is  of  a general  character  and  contains  little  which  would  be  of 
help  to  an  amateur  desiring  to  enter  the  business. 

A very  brief  description  of  a kiln  evaporator  is  given  in  a 
publication  by  the  Secretary  of  the  Missouri  State  Horticultural 
Societ}"!.  The  directions  for  construction,  estimates  of  ma- 
terial necessary,  and  suggestions  for  operation  are  clear  and 
concise,  but  the  type  of  building  is  the  cheapest,  most  flimsy 
wooden  structure  possible. 

As  regards  chemical  studies  of  the  composition  of  evap- 
orated apples  or  fruits  or  of  the  changes  in  composition  imdeiv 
gone  in  the  process  of  drying,  a diligent  search  of  the  literature 
reveals  very  little.  In  1886,  Edgar  Richards^,  working  in 
the  Bureau  of  Chemistry  of  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture, made  comprehensive  analyses  of  entire  fresh  fruits  and 
of  peeled  and  cored  fruits,  before  and  after  drying,  on  17 
varieties  of  apples.  The  results  show  the  character  and  extent 
of  the  slight  changes  undergone  in  the  course  of  the  drying 
process,  and  the  methods  employed  in  drying  are  very  briefly 
described.  In  1899,  C.  A.  Browne,  Jr.,  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  published  a report  of  rather 
extensive  studies  of  the  chemistry  of  the  apple  and  apple  pro- 
ducts^.  Five  pages  of  this  paper  are  devoted  to  discussion 
of  chemical  composition  of  evaporated  apples  in  comparison 
with  fresh  fruits;  to  the  effects  of  sulphuring,  and  to  rela- 
tive yield  of  dry  product  from  different  varieties  of  apples.. 
Lastly,  Brannt,  in  the  work  already  cited,  gives  composition 
before  and  after  evaporation  for  Baldwin  apples. 

Studies  of  the  chemical  composition  of  fresh  fruit  and  dried 
prunes  have  been  carried  on  at  the  Oregon  Station  by  G.  W. 
Shaw.  In  a publication  by  Hedrick,  already  cited^,  some 
eight  pages  are  devoted  to  reports  of  Shaw’s  analyses  of  a num- 
ber of  samples  of  Italian  and  Silver  prunes,  fresh  and  dried, 

1.  Goodman,  L.  A.,  Commercial  Fruit  Evaporators,  Circ.  Inform. 
14,  Univ.  Mo.  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.,  1903. 

2.  Richards,  Edgar,  Analyses  of  Apples,  Report  Com.  Agric.  for 
1886,  Washington,  D.  C.,  1887,  pp.  350-355. 

3.  Browne,  C.  A.,  Jr.,  A Chemical  Study  of  the  Apple  and  Its 
Products,  Penn.  Dept.  Agric.  Bull.  58,  46  pp.  1899. 

4.  Bull.  45,  Oregon  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.,  pp.  91-98. 


27 


aiul  a later  i)ul)lieatioii^  gave  results  of  a more  extensive- 
series  of  analyses  of  a nnmber  of  varieties.  At  the  California 
Agrienltnral  Experiment  Station,  extensive  investigations  of 
the  chemical  composition  of  prunes,  peaches  and  apricots  were 
made  by  G.  E.  Colby2  and  are  reported  in  the  Annual  Re- 
ports of  that  Station  for  the  years  1891-94,  while  methods  and 
effects  of  sulphuring  are  briefly  discussed  by  E.  W.  Hilgard 
in  a publication  of  the  same  station. 3 

A considerable  number  of  papers  dealing  in  more  or  less 
general  and  popular  fashion  Avith  some  of  the  various  phases 
of  the  subject  of  fruit  evaporation  are  scattered  thru  the  tiles 
of  the  horticultural  journals.  Mention  of  these  is  omitted, 
since  the  purpose  of  this  re^dew  is  not  to  bring  together  a com- 
plete bibliography  of  evaporation,  but  to  notice  such  papers 
as  Avill  be  at  once  accessible  and  valuable.  It  Avill  be  obvious 
to  the  reader  that  of  these,  those  of  Gould,  Corbett,  and  Lewis, 
and  his  co-Avorkers  are  the  most  recent,  and  therefore  the 
only  ones  Avhich  may  be  said  to  deal  Avith  methods  actually  in 
general  use. 

Of  the  present  paper  it  may  be  said  that  it  has  been  the- 
author’s  purpose  to  bring  together  from  the  literature  all  the 
existing  data  of  value  in  regard  to  evaporators  and  their  oper- 
ation ; to  supplement  this  by  including  the  results  of  personal' 
investigation  and  incpiiry,  and  to  prepare  someAA^hat  more  de- 
tailed plans  for  construction  and  instructions  for  equipment 
and  operation  of  evaporators  suitable  for  use  in  the  NortliAvest 
than  are  at  present  to  be  found  in  print. 

TYPES  OF  EVAPORATORS 

In  Avhat  folloAvs  it  is  the  author’s  purpose  to  describe  in  some 
detail  those  types  of  evaporating  plants  Avhich  have  been 

1.  ShaAv^  G.  W.,  The  Oregon  Prune;  Its  Composition,  Food  Value, 
Soil  Draught,  Oregon  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Bull.  61,  18  pp.  1900. 

2.  ColbA%  G.  E.,  Analyses  of  Fruit  and  Vegetable  Products,  Report 
Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  Univ.  of  Calif,  for  1891-92,  pp.  91-116;  same  for 
1892-94,  pp.  257-274;  also  Bulletins  93,  97,  and  101  of  that  station. 

3.  -Hilgard,  E.  W.,  The  Sulphuring  of  Fruits,  Report  Agri.  Exp. 
Sta.  Uni\^  of  Calif.,  189  0,  pp.  131-133;  also  Bulletin  86  of  that  sta- 
tion. 


28 


subjected  to  the  thoro  test  of  long  continued  general  use,  and 
proven  thereby  to  be  efficient  and  profitable  when  operated 
upon  a commercial  scale.  Consequently,  no  attempt  is  made 
to  include  such  evaporating  devices  as  have  at  some  time 
in  the  past  been  in  more  or  less  extended  use  but  have  since 
been  generally  discardedi.  Nor  is  any  mention  made  of  two 
or  three  machines,  essentially  new  in  tj^pe,  which  are  just  now 
attracting  some  attention  in  the  Northwest,  for  the  reason  that 
none  of  these  can  be  said  to  have  passed  the  experimental 
stage,  and  it  yet  remains  to  be  seen  whether  they  can  be  con- 
structed and  operated  upon  a commercial  scale  with  any  as- 
surance of  a reasonable  profit.  Also,  no  description  is  given 
of  any  of  the  numerous  ‘'family  driers”  or  “family  evaporat- 
ors” of  small  capacity,  intended  to  be  operated  over  a kitchen 
stove  or  small  heater  and  to  furnish  a means  of  drying  the 
winter  supply  of  fruit  for  the  family.  It  may  be  said  of  all 
these  small  machines  that  while  the  cpiality  of  their  product  is 
usually  good,  the  expense  of  operation  is  high  and  the  product 
invariably  costs  more,  when  labor,  cost  of  raw  material,  fuel, 
and  depreciation  of  the  machine  are  considered,  than  the  fruit 
produced  could  be  sold  for  in  the  markets.  Those  who  prefer 
to  prepare  their  own  family  supplies  at  home  may,  by  the 
exercise  of  a reasonable  degree  of  care,  make  a satisfactory 
product  with  any  one  of  a number  of  small  portable  driers,  but 
no  one  should  allow  himself  to  undertake  such  a task  in  the 
belief  that  any  real  saving  of  money  can  be  effected  thereby 
or  that  the  product  will  be  superior  to  the  standard  grades 
obtainable  in  the  market.  Sun  drying  is  not  discussed  here, 
but  will  be  dealt  with  in  a subsequent  publication. 

In  the  descriptions  of  evaporator  buildings  and  equipment 
which  follows,  no  attempt  has  been  made  to  draw  up  rigid 
detailed  specifications  covering  all  the  details  of  construction. 
The  intention  is  to  present  general  schemes  for  the  construction 

1.  The  reader  who  is  interested  in  the  history  of  evaporation  in 
the  Northwest  will  find  a large  number  of  machines  of  the  class 
here  mentioned  briefly  described  in  “Prunes  in  Oregon/’  by  U.  P. 
Hedrick,  Bulletin  45,-  Oregon  Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  1897, 
and  in  “Prunes,”  by  J.  A.  Balmer,  Bulletin  38,  Washington  Agricul- 
tural Experiment  Station,  1899. 


29 


of  buildings  in  which  the  general  arrangement  shall  be  as  con- 
venient and  as  well  adapted  to  the  purpose  as  possible,  hence 
the  plans  are  drawn  from  buildings  operated  by  practical 
evaporator  men  of  long  and  wide  experience  in  the  business^ 
and  commended  by  them  as  embodying  the  best  possible  fea- 
tures.. Local  conditions  must  determine  the  materials  to  be 
used  in  construction,  the  extent  to  which  power  machinery 
shall  take  the  place  of  hand  labor,  the  type  of  heating  equip- 
ment to  be  used,  and  many  other  details.  The  person  entrusted 
with  the  constructimi  of  the  building  and  the  installation  of 
the  equipment  must  have  had  sufficient  experience  in  con- 
struction and  in  the  making  or  the  interpreting  of  plans  to 
be  able  to  work  out  such  modifications  of  the  generalized  plans 
as  will  adapt  them  to  the  needs  of  the  particular  case.  It  is 
believed  that  the  descriptions  are  sufficiently  detailed,  when 
studied  in  connection  with  the  accompanying  sketches  and  the 
estimates  of  material  necessary,  to  enable  a workman  of  or- 
dinary experience  to  do  this. 

Sources  of  Information — The  '‘evaporator  district”  of  the 
United  States  may  be  said  to  comprise  a portion  of  Western 
New  York,  about  150  miles  in  length  by  40  to  75  miles  in 
breadth,  lying  along  the  shores  of  Lake  Ontario  from  the  Os- 
wego River  on  the  east  to  the  Niagara  River  on  the  west.  It 
was  in  this  region  that  the  evaporation  of  apples  first  assumed 
the  proportions  of  an  industry,  and  it  is  in  this  territory  that 
nearly  three-fourths  of  all  the  evaporated  apples  made  in  the 
United  States  are  produced.  The  writer  visited  this  district 
in  the  winter  of  1915-1916,  inspected  several  scores  of  plants, 
and  talked  with  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  representative 
operators  as  well  as  with  many  dealers  in  evaporated  fruics, 
contractors  and  builders  of  evaporators,  and  makers  of  evap- 
orator machiner}^  and  appliances.  The  greater  part  of  the 
detailed  information  regarding  kiln  evaporators  contained  in 
the  following  pages  was  collected  in  the  course  of  this  trip. 

Among  scores  of  others  to  whom  the  writer  is  indebted  for 
detailed  information  as  to  prevailing  methods  of  construction 
and  operation,  especially  of  kiln  evaporators,  cost  of  operating. 


30 


relative  efficiency  of  various  types  of  machinery  and  appli- 
ances, etc.,  especial  acknowledgement  for  assistance  rendered 
is  due  to  jMessrs.  L.  A.  Toan,  Farm  Bureau  Agent  of  Monroe 
County,  Kocliester;  Eroy  H.  Anderson,  Farm  Bureau  Agent 
of  Niagara  County,  Lockport ; Samuel  Fraser,  Pres.  New  A^ork 
State  Evaporated  Fruit  Producers’  Association,  Geneseo ; E.  W. 
Catchpole,  North  Rose;  F.  J.  Aldridge,  Honeoye  Falls',  E. 
Welch  and  T.  R.  Scott,  North  Rose;  L.  A.  Pike,  Lockport;  D. 
W.  Seeley,  Sodus  Point;  George  Hallauer  and  H.  L.  Phillips. 
Webster;  and  D.  H.  Wright  and  John  Newell,  editors  and 
publishers  of  ‘‘The  Evaporator,”  AVebster,  New  AMrk. 

Similar  acknowledgement  should  also  be  made  to  Alessrs, 
D.  A.  Snyder,  Dayton,  Oregon;  R.  AAA  King,  The  Dalles,  Ore- 
gon; Mark  Ewald,  Olympia,  AA^ash. ; AY.  II.  Paulhamus,  Puy- 
allup; and  Paul  II.  AA'e^wauch,  AValla  AA^alla.  In  addition,  free 
use  has  been  made  of  every  available  source  of  ]nil)lished  in- 
formation. 


THE  KILN  EVAPORATOR 

It  may  be  said  in  the  outset  that  in  AA'estern  New  A^ork  the 
kiln  evaporator  is  universally  used,  having  completely  dis- 
placed the  various  types  of  tower  or  stack  evaporators  de- 
scribed by  Bailey  and  (’orbett.  Among  the  reasons  given  by 
operators  for  the  abandonment  of  towers  are  that  the  fuel  and 
labor  cost  per  unit  of  output  were  greater,  as ' was  the 
initial  cost  of  construction,  and  that  the  constant  introduction 
of  fresh  fruit  retarded  the  drying  of  that  already  in  the  tower, 
lengthening  the  process  and  permitting  secondary  changes  in 
the  fruit  which  resulted  in  an  inferior  product  largely  devoid 
of  flavor.  They  claim  for  the  kiln  evaporator  a lower  cost  of 
construction  and  operation  and  a decidedly  improved  quality 
of  product.  There  can  be  no  question  that  the  first  of  these 
claims  is  true,  as  the  labor  required  to  operate  a kiln  is  con- 
siderably less  than  is  necessary  for  other  driers  of  equal  ca- 
pacity. Also,  the  quality  of  the  dry  fruit  is  generally  better 
and  more  uniform,  but  it  must  be  emphasized  that  the  char- 
acter of  the  product  depends  upon  the  watchfulness  and  skill 


31 


of  the  operator  at  least  as  much  as  upon  the  type  of  plant 
employed. 

In  its  essential  features  the  actual  drying  room  of  the  kiln 
evaporator  presents  little  that  will  be  wholly  new  to  those 
familiar  with  the  construction  of  the  hop  kilns  once  so  com- 
mon in  certain  parts  of  the  state.  The  drying  unit  is  two  stories 
in  Ireight  and  in  the  smallest  plants  is  usually  20,  much  more 
rarely  18  or  22  feet  square.  In  larger  plants  the  building  is 
divided  by  walls  continuous  from  ground  to  roof  into  a single 
or  double  row  of  units  of  this  size,  each  such  unit  constituting 
a kiln  which  can  be  operated  independently  of  the  others.  The 
ground  floor  is  usually  10  or  11  feet  in  height  and  contains  the 
stoves  or  heating  furnaces,  one  for  each  kiln,  with  space  for 
the  storage  of  fuel.  The  second  floor  is  usually  only  suffi- 
ciently high  at  the  eaves  to  permit  a man  to  stand  erect,  and 
the  ceiling  is  generally  nailed  to  the  lower  side  of  the  rafters, 
this  forming  an  inverted  hopper  or  trough  which  has  a ven- 
tilating tower  at  its  apex.  The  floor  is  made  of  narrow  slats 
laid  with  an  interval  of  one-fourth  or  three-eighths  inch  between 
them,  and  the  fruit  to  be  dried  is  spread  in  a uniform  layer 
of  four  to  six  inches  in  depth  upon  this  floor.  For  the  greater 
utilization  and  more  uniform  distribution  of  the  heat  supplied 
by  the  furnace,  the  pipe  collar  is  usually  fitted  with  a,  T joint, 
or  the  furnace  may  have  two  openings  for  pipe,  and  two  lines 
of  pipe  are  carried  around  the  room  one  or  more  times,  at  a 
distance  of  about  two  feet  from  floor  and  walls,  before  pass- 
ing into  the  flue. 

Such  a kiln  will  require  18  to  24  hours  to  dry  a charge  of 
sliced  apples  spread  to  a depth  of  five  or  six  inches.  As  re- 
gards capacity,  a 20x20  kiln  is  universally  called  a hundred 
bushel  drier  thruout  New  York,  as  it  is  reckoned  that  8 square 
feet  of  kiln  floor  are  necessary  to  dry  the  slices  made  from 
one  hundred  pounds  of  apples.  The  actual  daily  working  ca- 
pacity for  a kiln  of  this  size  varies  from  100  bushels  to  75  or 
less  by  reason  of  atmospheric  conditions,  peculiarities  in  the 
construction  of  the  building,  the  varying  efficiency  of  the 
furnaces  employed,  or  the  care  employed  in  spreading  and 
turning  the  drying  fruit. 


32 


The  Uses  and  Limitations  of  the  Kiln  Evaporator — The  chief 
use  of  the  kiln  evaporator  in  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  Mis- 
souri, and  Virginia  is  for  the  drying  of  apples,  and  many  long 
established  plants  had  never  dried  anything  else  until  the 
past  Avinter,  during  Avhich  many  evaporators  ran  at  full  ca- 
pacity, drying  carrots  and  cabbage  for  the  use  of  the  European 
armies. 

In  the  raspberry  growing  districts  of  New  York,  kilns  are 
employed  in  the  evaporation  of  the  surplus  crop,  the  method 
employed  being  to  cover  the  kiln  floor  with  burlap  or  sheeting,, 
to  spread  the  berries  in  a layer  not  more  than  two  inches  deep, 
and  to  leave  them  undisturbed  until  sufficiently  dry  to  stir 
Avithout  crushing.  Loganberries  and  blackberries  can  be  sat- 
isfactory dried  in  the  same  manner.  Unpeeled  peaches  can 
be  treated  precisely  as  apples  are,  peeled  peaches  are  best  han- 
dled in  the  manner  suggested  for  berries.  A somewhat  more 
satisfactory  product  Avill  be  obtained  in  the  case  of  loganberries; 
or  raspberries  by  the  use  of  trays  supported  by  racks  placed 
upon  the  kiln  floorl.  Prunes  cannot  be  dried  successfully 
except  by  the  employment  of  trays. 

In  a AA'Ord,  if  apples  are  the  chief  product  to  be  handled  by 
the  eAmporator,  the  kiln  type  of  plant  is  the  most  economical 
and  efficient  type  of  construction  to  employ.  If  prunes,  logan- 
berries and  raspberries  make  up  the  greater  part  of  the  raw 
material  and  apples  are  a distinctly  minor  part  of  it,  a tunnel 
or  a Carson-Snyder  evaporator  should  be  built.  The  cost  of 
operation  w^hen  apples  are  being  evaporated  will  be  slightly 


1.  Inexpensive  skeleton  racks,  each  capable  of  holding  one  or 
tAvo  tiers  of  12  or  16  trays  which  are  placed  two  or  three  inches 
apart  to  insure  good  circulation  of  air,  are  easily  constructed  and 
put  in  place  on  the  kiln  floor,  with  spaces  between  them  to  permit 
passing  to  and  fro.  The  trays  should  be  made  as  directed  in  the 
section  on  tunnel  evaporators,  page  — , and  should  in  no  case  be 
filled  to  a depth  of  more  than  1 V2  inches.  As  the  drying  in  the 
lower  trays  will  be  much  more  rapid  than  in  the  opper  ones,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  shift  the  trays  frequently  to  secure  uniform  drying. 
Obviously  this  method  is  too  laborious  to  be  practical  when  large 
quantities  of  berries  or  prunes  are  to  be  dried,  but  it  is  quite  pos- 
sible to  work  up  these  fruits  into  a satisfactory  product  as  a side 
line  in  an  evaporator  whose  primary  purpose  is  the  drying  of  apples. 


33 


greater  l)ut  the  qualitj^  of  the  product  made  from  berries  or 
prunes  will  be  considerably  better. 

The  Construction  of  the  Building — While  the  writer  is  fully 
conscious  of  the  importance  and  necessity  of  keeping  the  cost 
of  construction  of  buildings  down  to  the  lowest  possible  figure, 
and  keenly  anxious  to  prevent  unnecessary  expenditure,  he 
must  strongly  advise  against  the  building  of  such  cheap, 
flims}^  sheds  of  rough  lumber  as  have  been  suggested  by  one 
or  two  authors.  In  such  buildings  there  is  a very  great  danger 
of  lire ; insurance  rates,  when  insurance  can  be  secured  at  all, 
are  high ; the  whole  structure  deteriorates  rapidly,  soon 
becomes  an  eyesore  in  spite  of  heavy  annual  repair  bills, 
and  must  be  torn  down  and  replaced  after  a few  years.  Suc- 
cessful and  economical  drying  depends  upon  perfect  control  of 
the  temperature  in  the  kiln,  combined  Avith  the  greatest  pos- 
sible utilization  of  the  heat  produced.  To  secure  these, 
one  must  have  a building  Avhich  is  practically  air-tight  except 
at  air  inlets  and  ATntilators,  and  one  from  which  loss  of  heat  by 
radiation  is,  as  far  as  possible,  preA^ented.  In  an  old  build- 
ing full  of  cracks  and  knotholes,  or  a rough  structure  Avith 
Avails  made  of  a single  layer  of  corrugated  iron  or  rough  boards, 
one  may  easily  haA^e  a constant  loss  of  25  per  cent  of  the  heat 
produced  by  his  fuel  thru  radiation  from  the  walls,  Avhile  Ihe 
drafts  and  cross  currents  of  air  AAdiich  sAveep  thru  such  a struc- 
ture on  a Avindy,  rainy  day  may  practically  stop  the  drying 
process  or  permit  spoiling  of  fruit  to  occur.  No  one  can  make 
money  AAdiile  operating  under  such  conditions.  The  evapora- 
tion of  fruits,  Avhere  undertaken  at  all.  should  be  undertaken 
as  a definite  and  permanent  part  of  the  yearly  program.  To 
begin  it  Avith  ramshackle  buildings  and  makeshift  ecpiipment 
is  to  assume  the  handicap  of  high  interest  rates  thru  rapid 
deprecdation  of  the  inA^estment,  large  repair  bills  Avhich  will 
increase  in  amount  annually,  heaAw  insurance  rates  and  great 
risk  of  fire,  a large  outlay  for  fuel  AAdiich  gives  Ioav  reinrns 
in  Avork  performed,  an  increased  labor  cost,  and  the  occasional 
loss  of  a considerable  amount  of  improperly  cured  product. 
Some  or  all  of  these  factors  aauII  almost  inevitably  Avreck  what 


34 


would,  with  the  exercise  of  true  and  wise  economy,  have  been 
a successful  undertaking.  For  all  these  reasons,  one  must  ad- 
vise that  the  building  housing  the  kilns  be  a permanent  one 
as  nearly  fire  proof  in  construction  as  possible.  The  work  of 
preparing  the  fruit  for  drying  can,  in  case  of  necessity,  be 
carried  on  in  any  building  which  can  be  made  into  a light, 
comfortable,  sanitary  workroom,  but  the  added  conveiiience 
of  having  everything  beneath  one  roof  and  in  a building 
especially  designed  for  the  purpose  will  repay  the  increased 
cost. 

The  materials  to  be  used  in  building  will  of  course  (bpend 
upon  location  and  local  conditions.  Building  tile  makes  an 
ideal  building,  since  the  dead  air  space  within  the  tile  materi- 
ally reduces  loss  of  heat  by  radiation,  l)ut  the  cost  of  tile  is 
such  as  to  be  prohibitive.  Brick  will  also  be  too  costly  in  most 
localities.  ' Where  stone  is  available  in  the  immediate  locality, 
it  Avill  be  cheaper  than  any  other  fire  proof  material.  Con- 
crete or  concrete  block  will  cost  much  less  than  tile  or  brick, 
but  perhaps  the  least  expensive  method  of  construction  Avould 
be  to  use  metal  lath  and  plaster  on  both  inside  and  outside 
walls  on  a wooden  frame,  with  steel  girders  and  metal  roof. 
Old  railroad  rails,  if  obtainable,  may  be  used  as  joists,  by  the 
use  of  wooden  strips  upon  the  upper  surface  to  which  floors 
may  be  nailed.  Such  a building,  if  supplied  with  steel  doors, 
has  literally  nothing  which  can  be  burned  except  the  kiln  floors, 
and  if  the  doors  are  kept  closed,  fire  cannot  spread  from  the 
kilns  to  the  workroom. 

The  cost  of  construction  of  a given  building  will,  of  course, 
vary  considerably  with  location,  railway  facilities,  local  labor 
costs,  and  current  prices  of  materials.  In  order  to  supply 
data  from  which  probable  costs  can  be  worked  out  as  ac- 
curately as  possible  by  the  individual  builder,  detailed  bills 
of  materials  have  been  made  out  for  several  of  the  buildings 
described  herein,  and  these  have  been  submitted  to  architects 
in  various  parts  of  the  state  for  estimates  as  to  cost  of  ma- 
terials and  of  construction.  Such  bills  of  materials  and  cost 
estimates  will  be  found  on  a succeeding  page;  it  is  hoped 


35 


that  they  may  furnish  a basis  from  which  a prospective 
builder  in  any  given  section. of  the  state  may  reach  a fairly 
accurate  estimate  of  the  probable  cost  of  the  plant  he  desires 
to  construct.  Figures  on  cost  of  actual  buildings  cannot  be 
given,  since  diligent  inquiry  has  failed  to  discover  a single 
concrete,  stone,  or  metal  lath  and  plaster  evaporator  build- 
ing in  the  state  of  Washington.  Much  data  as  to  comparative 
cost  of  concrete  and  woden  buildings  was  obtained  in  western 
New  York,  and  a few  figures  may  be  given  by  way  of  illus- 
tration. 

Messrs.  Welch  and  Scott  of  North  Rose,  New  York,  are 
operators  of  a large  number  of  small  two-kiln  and  four-kiln 
plants  which  are  models  of  their  kind.  The  two-kiln  evap- 
orator subsequently  described  fairly  represents  their  plants, 
except  that  power  machinery  has  been  introduced.  These 
gentlemen  have  a number  of  two-kiln  plants,  32x36  feet  in 
size  and  15^  feet  to  the  eaves,  each  with  a paring  room 
12x30  feet,  a storage  bin  6x12  feet,  and  two  kilns  each  18x20 
feet  in  size.  These  buildings  are  constructed  of  6x8x10  inch 
concrete  blocks  and  are  roofed  with  corrugated  iron.  These 
plants,  fully  equipped  with  three  hand  power  peelers,  a hand 
slicer,  a bleacher,  and  two  furnaces  for  burning  hard  coal, 
cost  $1450  each.  Similar  buildings  constructed  of  wood  and 
lined  with  asbestos  sheathing  thruout  the  furnace  rooms,  cost 
$1250  each.  A four-kiln  plant  built  of  concrete  blocks,  with 
20x20  foot  kilns,  with  power  parers,  elevator,  bleacher  and 
slicer,  cost  $2360  for  building  and  $625  for  equipment  witli 
power  machinery  and  furnaces,  while  a wooden  building,  lined 
with  asbestos,  of  the  same  dimensions  and  built  from  the  same 
plans,  cost  $1983  for  the  building.  The  owner  estimated  that 
the  additional  cost  of  insurance,  painting,  and  repairs  will 
in  seven  to  ten  years  make  the  wooden  buildings  cost  fully 
as  much  as  the  concrete  structures,  with  a rate  of  depreciation 
very  materially  greater. 

The  plans  which  follow  are  the  best  obtainable  after  close 
study  of  various  types  of  construction.  They  are  intended 
lo  serve  as  suggestions  which  may  be  modified  to  suit  the 


36 


needs  of  the  individual  builder.  Thus  the  two-kiln  plant  can 
be  readily  expanded  into  a three-kiln  plant,  that  having  four 
kilns  into  one  having  five  or  six.  The  plans  contemplate  the 
use  of  some  source  of  power  for  running  parers,  bleachers, 
and  slicers,  but  those  who  prefer  to  employ  hand  power  ma- 
chinery will  find  some  suggestions  on  a later  page  and  can 
easily  modify  the  plans  here  given  to  meet  their  needs.  The 
writer  wishes  to  strongly  insist,  however,  that  no  more  serious 
mistake  than  the  installation  of  hand  power  machines  in 
his  plant  could  very  well  be  made  by  any  one  starting  into 
evaporation  as  a business.  The  labor  of  turning  the  hand 
driven  parer  is  considerable,  the  women  operators  become 
fatigued,  and  a smaller  output  per  machine  of  poorly  pared, 
imperfectly  cored  fruit,  requiring  more  work  at  the  hands  of 
the  trimmers,  is  the  result.  The  task  of  slicing  the  fruit  with 
the  best  hand-driven  slicer  available  is  a laborious  and  time- 
consuming  one.  Moreover,  the  daily  transfer  by  hand  of  200 
bushels  of  fruit  from  paring  table  to  bleacher  and  from 
bleacher  to  slicer,  with  a climb  to  the  second  floor  with  each 
load  included,  is  a task  which  few  able  bodied  men  will  care 
to  continue  day  after  day.  A gasoline  engine  such  as  is  every- 
where used  for  spraying  will  eliminate  this  hand  labor;  the 
cost  of  hand  and  power  driven  machines  is  practically  equal, 
while  the  saving  in  wages  in  two  seasons  will  pay  for  the 
shafting,  belting  and  labor  necessary  to  construct  conveyors. 

It  is  assumed  that  where  power  is  employed,  a gasoline  en- 
gine placed  somewhere  outside  the  building  will  be  used.  Hence 
no  special  provision  has  been  made  in  any  of  the  plans  for 
an  engine  placed  inside  the  walls. 

Two-Kiln  Evaporator — Figures  I to  IV  show  plans  of  a two- 
kiln  evaporator  with  18x20-foot  kilns,  having  an  average  daily 
capacity  of  175  bushels  fresh  fruit  or  a seasonal  capacity  for 
a 60  daj^  evaporating  season  of  approximately  10,000  bushels 
if  no  peels  and  cores  are  dried.  Since  this  amount  of  apples 
at  least  will  be  available  in  ordinary  seasons  in  any  locality 
vhere  the  construction  of  a commercial  evaporator  is  l)eing 
seriously  considered,  plans  for  smaller  plants  are  not  included 


37 


here.  Those  desiring  suggestions  as  to  the  building  of  a one- 
kiln  plant  will  find  plans  and  suggestions  for  their  construction 
in  Farmers’  Bulletins  213  and  291.  It  must  be  emphasized, 
however,  that  the  operation  of  a one-kiln  plant,  under  con- 
ditions prevailing  in  Washington,  can  scarcely  be  commercially 
profitable,  while  the  two-kiln  plant  will  yield  a comparative- 
ly narrow  margin  of  profit  if  any  considerable  portion  of  the 
labor  employed  must  be  paid  for  at  current  rates. 


Fig.  I.  Two-kiln  evaporator,  ground-floor  plan.  K,  kilns,  each 
18x20  feet.  W.R.,  work  room,  12x36  feet.  A.B.,  apple  bin.  W.T., 
washing  tank.  G.,  grader.  P.T.,  paring  table  F.,  furnace.  1.1, 
ventilators,  3x1 feet.  2,  fuel  doors  of  kilns.  3,  doors  from  work 
room.  4,  chimney  of  furnaces.  5,  piping  of  furnace.  6,  parers. 
7,  apple  conveyor  on  paring  table. 

In  the  following  description,  details  as  to  construction  of 
a number  of  essential  parts  of  the  equipment,  for  example, 
paring  tables,  apple  and  waste  conveyors,  etc.,  are  omitted. 
These  are  fully  described  and  figured  in  the  section  on  "‘iModel 
Four-kiln  Evaporator.”  The  construction  and  arrangement 
are  essentially  the  same  in  the  two  cases. 


38 


The  building  shown  in  the  plans  is  36x82  feet  in  size,  and 
I6V2  feet  in  height  at  the  eaves.  The  first  story  is  10  feet  in 
height  to  the  floor,  and  is  divided  into  two  furnace  rooms 
each  18x20  and  a paring  room  12x36  feet.  The  furnace  rooms 
have  considerable  space  available  for  the  storage  of  fuel.  The 
furnace,  arrangement  of  piping,  etc.,  is  subsequently  discussed 
in  detail  mider  the  head  '^Heating  Apparatus.”  The  most  im- 
portant feature  of  the  construction  of  the  furnace  room  is  that 


Fig.  II.  Two-kiln  evaporator,  second-floor  plan.  K.F.,  kiln  floors. 
W.R.,  work  room.  C.R.,  curing  room.  S.B.,  storage  bin.  E.,  ele- 
vator. B,  bleacher.  S,  slicer.  F,  Chimney  of  furnaces. 

adequate  provision  for  inlet  of  air  be  made.  The  plans  here 
given  provide  tAvo  air  inlets  on  each  side  of  every  kiln,  each 
3x11/2  feet,  placed  6 feet  apart  and  at  a distance  of  6 inches 
above  the  floor  of  the  kiln.  When  kilns  stand  in  series,  the 
vrall  betAveen  adjacent  kilns  has  these  openings  just  as  do  the 
outside  Avails,  and  upon  the  side  on  which  the  paring  room  ad- 
joins the  kilns,  openings  in  the  outer  Avail  lead  beneatli  the 


39 


paring  room  floor  to  the  openings  in  the  kiln.  Such  an  ar* 
rangement  secures  perfect  control  of  the  air  movement  irre- 
spective of  direction  of  wind.  Sliding  iron  doors  running  in 
grooves  permit  opening  or  closing  of  the  air  inlets  to  any  de- 
sired degree. 

Each  of  the  furnace  rooms  should  have  a she^  iron  door 
opening  to  the  outside,  in  order  to  permit  the  unloading  of  fuel 
directly  into  the  kiln.  This  door  may  be  centrally  placed  in 
the  outer  wall,  as  indicated  in  the  plans,  and  need  not  be  more 
than  5 feet  high.  It  should  be  four  feet  in  width  to  facilitate 
easy  handling  of  wood.  Most  important  of  all,  it  should  be 
htted  with  a good  substantial  lock  and  the  key  should  be  in 
the  possession  of  the  furnace  man,  in  order  that  careless  or 
irresponsible  people  may  not  stop  the  drying  process  by  leaving 
the  door  open. 

The  floor  of  the  paring  room  should  be  of  a good  quality  of 
matched  flooring  and  should  be  carefully  laid  in  order  to  fa- 
cilitate cleaning.  It  should  be  elevated  sufficiently  above  the 
ground  to  permit  free  passage  of  air  from  the  inlets  in  the  outer 
wall  to  those  in  the  walls  of  the  kilns,  as  shown  in  the  plans  of 
side  elevation  of  the  four-kiln  evaporator.  One  end  of  the  par- 
ing room  is  occupied  by  a storage  bin  12x6  feet,  which  may  be 
given  a capacitj^  of  575  bushels  by  carrying  its  walls  up  to  the 
ceiling.  The  storage  bin  is  filled  from  outside.  As  apples  are 
used  they  are  drawn  thru  a sliding  door  directly  into  a washing 
tank.  If  no  power  equipment  is  available,  one  man  washes 
off  adhering  dirt,  throws  out  over-ripe  and  rotten  apples,  runs 
the  washed  apples  thru  the  grader  if  it  be  desired  to  separate 
the  fruit  into  several  sizes  prior  to.  peeling,  keeps  the  peelers 
supplied  with  apples,  and  removes  peelings  as  they  accumu- 
late. One  man  can  easily  do  this  while  attending  to  the  fires 
in  the  kilns,  if  the  arrangement  suggested  is  followed.  If  power 
•s  available,  a l)elt  conveyor  which  carries  the  washed  apples 
to  a bin  on  the  second  floor,  from  which  a system  of  chutes 
distribute  them  to  the  parers  as  needed,  should  be  installed. 
This  arrangement,  which  is  fully  described  on  a later  page, 
enables  one  man  to  prepare  enough  apples  for  a day’s  run  in 


40 


a little  more  than  an  hour,  leaving  the  remainder  of  the  day 
free  for  other  work. 

The  paring  table  should  be  constructed  as  described  on  page 
49.  It  is  lighted  by  two  large  windows  and  the  parers  sit  be- 
side these  windows,  with  the  light  falling  over  their  shoulders. 
The  peeled  fruit  rolls  across  the  table  from  the  peelers  to  the 
trimmers,  who  sit  opposite.  The  trimmers  remove  bits  of  par- 
ings, bruised  spots  and  other  imperfections,  and  throAV  the 
trimmed  fruit  on  an  endless  belt  conveyor,  shown  in  the  center 
of  the  paring  table  and  fully  descril)ed  in  a later  section,  which 
carries  the  fruit  into  the  elevator  and  thus  to  the  bleacher.  In 
the  absence  of  a source  of  power,  the  trimmed  fruit  must  be 
dropped  into  boxes  which  are  carried  to  the  bleacher  by  hand 
as  they  become  filled.  In  no  case  should  fruit  l)e  allowed  to 
lie  any  length  of  time  after  peeling  before  placing  in  the 
bleacher,  or  darkening  Avill  certainly  occur. 

Several  types  of  bleachers  are  in  use  and  the  next  step  in 
the  process  will  depend  upon  the  particular  type  employed.  The 
type  which  is  most  widely  used  consists  of  a long,  tight  box, 
18  inches  to  2 feet  in  width  and  with  a length  of  six  to  ten 
feet  per  hundred  l>ushe]s  of  daily  capacity,  or  24  to  40  feet  for 
a four-kiln  plant.  The  apples  are  carried  by  the  conveyor  into 
one  end  of  the  bleaching  l)ox  and  fall  upon  an  endless  slat  and 
chain  belt  which  extends  the  length  of  the  bleacher.  By  means 
of  a worm  gear,  this  belt  is  made  to  move  very  slowly,  so  that 
30  to  40  minutes  are  recpiired  for  fruit  to  pass  through  the  box 
and  drop  at  the  opposite  end  into  a storage  bin  or  directly  into 
the  hopper  of  the  slicer.  Sulphur  is  burned  in  a heavy  iron  pot 
or  other  suitable  vessel  placed  just  outside  and  below  the 
apple  inlet,  and  at  the  opposite  end  a small  pipe  conveys  the 
fumes  into  the  flue.  Heavy  leather  or  weighted  canvas  flaps 
close  the  inlet  and  outlet  for  apples,  to  prevent  the  escape  of 
fumes  into  the  room.  Such  bleachers  are  sold  complete  by  a 
number  of  firms,  but  it  is  a matter  of  economy  to  purchase  only 
the  metal  parts,  since  an  intelligent  carpenter  can  construct 
the  box  and  set  the  machine  up  ready  to  run  with  the  aid  of 
the  diagram.  Fig.  III. 


41 


42 


Pig.  111.  Power  bleacher. 


In  case  the  plant  does  not  have  a source  of  power,  another 
type  of  bleacher  must  be  employed.  One  very  common  type 
consists  simply  of  a long  box,  high  and  wide  enough  to  receive 
an  ordinary  apple  box,  and  sufficiently  long  to  accommodate  six 
to  ten  such  boxes  placed  end  to  end.  Tightly  fitting  doors  are 
provided  at  the  ends,  and  a track  along  which  boxes  may  slide 
is  made  by  spiking  two  2x4  scantlings  on  edge  to  the  floor  of 
the  box.  Sulphur  is  burned  in  a pan  placed  between  the  tracks 
at  one  end,  and  the  fumes  are  carried  off  by  a pipe  at  the  oppo- 
site end.  As  apples  are  pared,  they  are  placed  in  boxes,  and  as 
a box  becomes  filled  it  is  pushed  in  at  one  end  of  the  bleacher, 
moving  those  already  there  onward  toward  the  opposite  end, 
where  they  are  withdrawn  when  sufficiently  bleached. 

Another  satisfactory  bleacher  consists  essentially  of  a bureau- 
like structure  carrying  a series  of  shallow,  tight-fitting  trays 
or  drawers  whose  bottoms  are  made  of  narrow  slats  or  boards 
in  which  numerous  %-inch  auger  holes  have  been  bored.  Sul- 
phur is  burned  in  a tight  compartment  below  the  lowermost 
drawer,  the  fumes  rise  from  tray  to  tray  thru  the  fruit,  and  are 
drawn  off  by  a small  pipe  at  the  conical  top.  A bleacher  of 
this  type  should  be  made  of  such  a size  that  each  tray  will 
carry  a box  of  pared  apples  spread  in  a layer  two  apples  deep. 
"While  such  a bleacher  does  very  effective  work,  it  must  be  em- 
phasized that  the  additional  time  and  labor  required  in  repeated- 
ly handling  the  fruit  is  very  considerable  and  that  power  in- 
stallation is  always  strongly  advised  as  a matter  of  economy. 

'ATiatever  the  type  of  bleacher  employed,  it  cannot  be  too 
strongly  emphasized  that  the  piping  must  be  carefully  done  in 
order  that  the  fumes  may  not  escape  into  the  room.  They  are 
intensely  irritating  to  the  eyes  and  throat,  and  they  attack 
metal  so  vigorously  that  when  allowed  to  escape  at  the  level  of 
a shingle  roof  the  nails  may  be  absolutely  destroyed  in  the 
course  of  two  or  three  seasons.  Therefore,  terracotta  pipe  care- 
fully cemented  at  the  joints,  or  heavy  castiron  pipe  (called  by 
plumbers  soil  pipe)  with  the  joints  set  in  white  lead,  should  be 
used,  and  it  should  be  connected  with  one  of  the  kiln  flues  in 
order  to  carry  the  fumes  well  above  the  roof.  If  iron  pipe  is 


43 


used,  its  term  of  service  will  be  materially  increased  by  flowing^ 
white  lead  paint  repeatedly  thru  it,  at  intervals  of  a few  hours, 
so  that  the  inner  surface  gets  a good  heavy  coating. 

AYhen  taken  from  the  bleacher  the  fruit  should  be  sliced  at 
once.  There  are  several  hand-operated  slicers  on  the  market, 
but  the  work  with  the  best  of  them  is  slow  and  laborious  and 
recjuires  the  time  of  two  men.  A power  slicer  costs  very  little 
more,  does  more  and  better  work  in  a given  time,  is  automatic 
in  action  if  a power  l)leacher  delivering  into  the  hopper  of  the 
slicer  is  used,  and  requires  one  man  only  if  there  is  no  power 
bleacher  and  apples  must  be  fed  from  barrels  or  boxes. 
Consequently  a power  slicer  will  save  its  cost  in  labor  in  two 
seasons. 

From  the  slicer  the  apple  rings  fall  into  boxes  or  barrels 
standing  on  trucks,  and  are  transferred  to  the  kiln  floor.  Here 
they  are  spread  as  uniforml}^  as  possible,  usually  by  means  of 
a wooden  rake,  to  a depth  of  4 to  6 inches,  and  are  left  undis- 
turbed until  drying  at  the  surface  has  made  the  slices  tough 
enough  to  permit  stirring  without  injury,  which  usually  requires 
four  or  five  hours.  They  are  then  thoroly  stirred  by  means  of 
wooden  rakes  and  shovels.  This  stirring  is  repeated,  at  first 
at  intervals  of  two  hours,  then  more  frequently,  until  the  fruit 
receives  three  or  four  thoro  stirrings  in  its  last  two  hours  on 
the  kiln  floor. 

AYhen  dry  the  fruit  is  transferred  from  the  kiln  floor  to  tne 
storing  or  curing  room,  where  it  is  piled  up  to  a depth  of  a foot 
or  more  to  undergo  a slow  after-curing  process  prior  to  being 
packed. 

The  roof  of  the  building  is  so  constructed  that  the  apex  or 
ridgepole  is  directly  over  the  middle  of  the  row  of  kilns,  which 
are  ceiled  directly  on  the  rafters  with  metal  or  boards.  The 
ventilating  shaft  occupies  the  apex  of  the  roof,  extends  the 
entire  length  of  the  building,  and  should  be  three  feet  in  width 
and  at  least  four  feet  in  height.  A rather  widely  used  type  of 
ventilator  is  shoAvn  in  figure  IV.  Its  distinctive  feature  is  the 
fact  that  it  is  double  walled,  the  outer  walls  having  no  connec- 
tion with  the  inner  and  being  placed  at  a distance  of  12  to  16- 


44 


Fig.  IV.  Details  of  construction  of  double-walled  ventilator. 
Warm  air  escapes  from  the  shaft  through  the  continuous  opening  12 
inches  in  width  at  the  top  of  the  inner  wall;  the  opening  at  the 
bottom  of  the  outer  wall  permits  cold  air  to  enter  and  pass  up  be- 
tween the  walls,  assisting  the  draft,  while  the  upper  portion  of  the 
outer  wall  keeps  snow  or  rain  from  blowing  into  the  shaft. 

inches  from  them.  These  outer  walls  are  not  covered  by  the 
roof  of  the  ventilator,  but  are  boarded  solidly  except  for  a space 
of  12  inches  in  width  at  the  bottom,  which  is  left  open  for  the 
entire  length.  The  inner  walls  are  boarded  up  solidly  from  the 
bottom  for  a distance  of  three  feet,  leaving  a space  a foot  in 
width  just  beneath  the  ventilator  roof,  thru  which  the  warm 
air  escapes  from  the  kilns.  The  outer  wall  thus  has  an  opening 
at  the  bottom  thru  which  currents  of  cold  air  moving  along  the 
roof  of  the  building  may  enter  the  space  between  the  walls, 
passing  up  between  them  and  assisting  in  carrying  off  the  warm 
moist  air  escaping  at  the  top  of  the  shaft.  The  outer  wall  makes 
it  impossible  for  the  wind  to  blow  directly  into  the  opening 


45 


in  the  inner  wall,  wliieli  would  interfere  with  the  escape  of  the 
warm  air,  and  also  keeps  rain  or  snow  from  driving  into  the 
shaft.  AYhile  such  ventilators  are  said  to  work  well,  the  fact 
that  they  cannot  be  opened  and  closed  with  varying  atmos- 
pheric conditions  make  them  less  efficient  than  a second  type, 
in  which  the  side  walls  of  the  ventilator  are  made  in  sections 
exactly  like  the  ordinary  window  shutter,  the  boards  of  which 
the  shutters  are  built  being  three  or  four  inches  wide.  By  means 
of  ropes  attached  to  the  shutters  and  passing  over  pulleys,  the 
individual  shutter  can  be  opened  or  closed  at  will.  Such  an 
arrangement  permits  perfect  control  of  the  draft,  without 
which  it  is  impossible  to  secure  uniform  results. 

Model  Four-Kiln  Evaporator — Figures  V to  X give  plans  for 
an  evaporator  having  four  20x20  foot  kilns  with  an  approxi- 
mate capicity  of  400  bushels  of  apples  per  day.  Many  features 
of  the  construction  and  equipment  are  essentially  identical  with 
those  of  the  two-kiln  plant  just  described  and  will  be  clear 
without  further  explanation. 

In  a plant  of  this  or  larger  size  it  would  be  a fundamental 
and  well  nigh  ruinous  mistake  to  install  anything  else  than  a 
complete  outfit  of  power  machinery.  AA'ith  power  driven 
parers,  five  girls  or  women  will  prepare  at  least  as  much 
fruit  as  six  women  using  hand  peelers,  without  the  fatigue- 


the  ventilating-  openings  in  the  wall,  which  permit  free  entrance  of 
air  beneath  the  floor  of  the  work  room  to  the  air  inlets  in  the  walls 
of  the  kilns. 


46 


Fig.  VI.  Four-kiln  evaporator,  ground-floor  plan.  K.K.,  kilns, 
each  20x20  feet.  W.R.,  work  room,  80x18  feet.  A.  B.,  apple  bin, 
12x16  feet.  W.T.,  washing  tank.  G.,  grader.  P.T.,  paring  table. 

E. ,  conveyors  for  apples  and  waste.  V.,  ventilators,  5x1 feet. 

F.  D.,  fuel  doors  to  kilns  I.,  I-beams  supporting  kiln  floors.  F., 
furnace  with  jacket-and-hopper  construction.  \V.,  windows.  D., 
doors. 


Fig.  VII.  Four-kiln  evaporator,  second-story  plan.  K.F.,  kiln 
floors.  F.,  flues  from  furnaces.  'V^R.,  work  room.  S.R.,  storage 
bin.  B.,  bleacher.  S.,  slicer.  D.,  doors.  W.,  windows. 

and  consequent  careless  and  imperfect  work  which  occurs 
when  machines  are  run  by  hand.  With  conveyor,  bleacher, 
and  slicer  driven  by  power,  one  man  can  look  after  the  fur- 
naces and  keep  the  peelers’  table  supplied  with  apples  and 
clear  of  refuse,  while  a second  man  can  take  care  of  the  fruit 


47 


at  the  slicer  and  on  the  kilns.  AVere  the  fruit  to  be  moved 
and  sliced  by  hand,  two  additional  men  or  a man  and  a strong 
boy  would  be  needed.  Consequently,  complete  power  equip- 
ment easily  saves  the  wages  of  tAvo  or  three  hands  in  a plant 
of  this  size,  and  will  pay  for  itself  in  three  or  four  seasons. 

In  the  plan  here  given,  the  apples  are  delivered  from  the 
Avagons  to  the  storage  bin,  which  is  12x15  feet  in  size.  If  it 
is  is  desired  to  keep  varieties  separate,  which  is  highly  ad- 
Ausable,  this  bin  may  ])e  divided  into  two  or  more  compart- 
ments, in  Avhich  case  both  the  outer  receiving  door  and  the 
door  to  the  discharging  chute  aa^ouM  be  built  in  sections  open- 
ing separately  for  each  bin.  From  the  bins,  sliding  doors 
open  into  a discharging  chute  thru  which  the  apples  are  run 
directly  into  a washing  tank.  From  this  point  there  are  tAvo 
possibilities.  One  man  may  Avash  the  apples,  transfer  them  to 
the  grader  if  it  is  desired  to  Avork  up  large  and  small  apples 
separately,  and  carry  the  fruit  from  the  grader  to  the  tables, 
or  a coiiA^eyor  may  be  rigged  to  carry  the  apples  from  the 


Fig.  VIII.  Sectional  vieAV  of  evaporator  from  side,  showing  belt 
conveyor  from  grader  to  storage  bin  and  chutes  from  bin  to  paring 
table.  A.B.,  apple  bin  with  elevated  floor  and  sliding  door  deliver- 
ing into  W.T.,  washing  tank.  C.,  conveyor  lifting  apples  from  wash- 
ing tank  into  a hopper  of  G.,  grader.  Ci,  a second  conveyor  receiving 
apples  from  grader  and  carrying  them  to  A.B.,  apple  bin  on  second 
floor.  Ch.,  chutes  from  second-floor  bin  to  paring  table.  P.  parers. 


48 


C.,  conveyor;  A.B.,  apple  bin  with  floor  inclined  to  mouth  of  Ch., 
chute  to  P.  T.,  paring  table,  Ci,  conveyor  from  paring  table  to. 
bleacher. 

washing  tank  to  the  hopper  of  the  grader,  while  a second 
conveyor,  placed  closely  against  the  wall  out  of  the  way,  re- 
ceives the  fruit  and  carries  it  to  a conveniently  located  bin 
on  the  second  floor.  From  this  bin  a series  of  chutes  pass 
thru  the  floor  and  descend  to  the  paring  table,  each  ending 
in  a sliding  door  which  opens  into  a box  placed  beside  the 
parer.  With  this  arrangement,  one  man  can,  in  a couple  of  hours, 
wash  and  grade  enough  apples  for  a day’s  run  and  is  then 
free  for  other  work.  Since  the  floor  of  the  bin  has  a slight 
inclination  toward  the  chute,  the  apples  pass  by  gravity  from 
the  bin  into  the  chutes,  keeping  them  filled  so  long  as  there  are 
apples  in  the  bin,  and  the  parers  have  only  to  open  the  slid- 
ing doors  for  a moment  to  fill  their  apple  boxes  as  these  be- 
come empty.  This  arrangement  is  not  shown  in  the  floor 
plans,  since  it  would  make  the  drawings  rather  complicated, 
but  it  is  diagrammatically  represented  in  figures  VITI  and  IX. 
The  small  ’apples  are  collected  from  the  grader  into  boxes: 


49 


or  barrels,  and  are  worked  up  separately  when  a sufficient 
quantity  has  been  collected. 

The  shafting  which  drives  parers,  conveyors,  and  grader 
is  suspended  from  the  joists,  and  12  inches  below  them,  so 
as  not  to  interfere  with  free  movement  around  the  work  table. 
The  apple  waste  conveyor  is  six  inches  wide,  and  runs  in  the 
bottom  of  a trough  seven  inches  wide  and  four  inches  deep, 
raised  six  inches  above  the  top  of  the  table,  as  sho^vn  in 
figure  X.  This  elevation  of  the  apple  conveyor  above  the  table 
has  two  advantages,  the  peels  and  cores  do  not  fall  into  it  as 
would  be  the  case  if  it  ran  at  the  level  of  the  table,  also,  apples 
upon  it  are  visible  from  any  part  of  the  room,  and  it  is  im- 
possible for  a trimmer  to  do  careless  work  without  being  de- 
tected. The  top  of  the  table  is  slightly  inclined — a drop  of 
1 inch  in  SYj  feet  is  sufficient — toward  the  side  at  which  the 
trimmers  sit,  which  is  faced  with  a 1x2  strip  projecting  % 
inch  above  the  edge.  The  pared  apples  drop  from  the  forks 
of  the  machines  and  roll  down  the  slight  incline,  beneath  the 
conveyor,  to  the  opposite  side,  where  they  are  arrested  by 
the  edging  strip.  When  trimmed,  a mere  turn  of  the  trimmers’ 
hand  deposits  the  apple  on  the  conveyor.  The  conveyor  for 
waste  is  placed  below  the  table,  beneath  and  slightly  to  the 
inner  side  of  the  paring  machines,  and  an  opening  8 inches 
square  just  back  of  each  machine  permits  peels  and  cores  to 
drop  directly  upon  the  belt,  while  the  waste  from  the  trimmers’ 
side  of  the  table  is  easily  swept  into  the  openings  as  it  ac- 
cumulates. 

The  work  tabh^  shown  in  the  plans  has  ample  space  for 
seven  machines  and  for  fourteen  trimmers.  AVith  power 
parers  kept  in  a good  state  of  repair,  six  experienced  peelers 
sliould.  in  a nine  hour  day.  easily  pare  enough  fruit  to  keep 
a 400-bushel  plant  going.  The  number  of  trimmers  needed 
will  depend  upon  the  mechanical  perfection  and  state  of  re- 
pair of  the  parers  and  to  an  even  greater  degree  upon  the 
character  of  the  fruit.  When  working  with  good  C grade 
fruit,  three  experienced  trimmers  may  easily  keep  the  tables 
clear  for  two  machines.  Avhile  Avith  small  culls  or  fruit  having 


50 


decayed  spots  or  much  codling  moth  injury,  two  trimmers  to 
each  parer  may  find  it  difficult  to  properly  trim  the  fruit.  In, 
any  case,  economy  at  the  trimming  table  means  fruit  of  poor 
quality  which  will  find  a market  at  less  than  prevailing  prices 
for  ‘‘prime”  fruit. 

9 


1 

T — 

T 

i 1 1 1 1 1 1 

—7 

\; 



\ 6 

// 

n 

TTTTTTT 

M 1 1 1 1 1 ii 

f 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 ' 

r 

> 

j ■ . rb  - -f-v 

10 

Fig.  X.  Sectional  view  of  plant  showing  arrangement  of  con- 
veyors. 1,  paring  table.  2,  position  of  paring  machines.  3,  endless' 
belt  conveyor  for  pared  apples.  4,  elevator  from  end  of  paring  table 
to  hopper  of  5,  bleacher.  6,  sulphur  chamber  of  bleacher.  7,  pipe 
of  bleacher,  opening  into  9,  flue  of  furnace.  8,  slicer.  10,  storage 
bin.  11,  kiln. 

The  conveyor  from  the  work  table  delivers  the  fruit  to  the 
bleacher,  which  is  suspended  from  the  joists,  QYi  foot  from  the 
floor,  out  of  the  way  of  those  working  in  the  rooms.  The 
bleacher  delivers  the  apples  into  a bin  placed  at  such  a height 
above  the  floor  that  they  may  be  brought  to  the  slicer  by 
gravity,  or  they  may  pass  directly  into  the  hopper  of  the 
slicer  when  it  is  in  operation.  From  the  slicer  the  fruit  may 
be  received  in  a barrel  standing  on  a truck  and  pushed  into 
the  kiln  by  hand,  or  it  is  quite  possible  to  construct  a simple 
system  of  belt  conveyors  which  will  receive  the  fruit  at  the 


51 


slicer  ^nd  convey  it  to  a point  inside  the  door  of  the  kiln 
which  is  being  filled. 

In  the  plan  here  given,  the  conveyors  from  the  work  table 
deliver  both  apples  and  waste  upstairs.  In  case  peels  and 
cores  are  to  be  discarded  or  used  for  stock  feed  without  be- 
ing pressed  for  vinegar,  the  plan  can  easily  be  modified  by 
extending  the  waste  conveyor  so  that  it  delivers  at  any  de- 
sired point  outside  the  building. 

Plants  of  Larger  Capacity — Figures  XI  to  XV  present  plans 
of  a model  8-kiln  plant  having  an  approximate  daily  capacity 
of  800  bushels,  or  a total  capacity  of  40,000  to  48,000  bushels 
for  a season  of  50  to  60  days.  Only  the  exceptional  individ- 
ual or  community  will  have  need  for  a plant  of  such  capacity, 
and  the  plans  are  purposely  generalized  in  order  that  they  may 
be  easily  modified  to  make  them  suit  individual  needs.  It 
may  be  pointed  out  that  the  building  is  as  compact  as  it  is 
])ossible  to  make  it,  hence  cost  of  construction  will  be  minimum, 
and  that  labor-saving  machinery  driven  by  power  replaces 
band  labor  wherever  possible.  The  eight  kilns  are  so  arrangevd 
lhat  free  movement  of  air  into  each  of  them  from  any  point 
of  the  compass  is  possible,  which  is  not, the  case  when  kilns 
are  arranged  side  by  side  in  a long  row  of  six  or  eight.  The 
full  explanations  accompanying  the  drawings,  with  the  de- 
scriptions of  smaller  plants  which  precede,  make  detailed  de- 
scription unnecessary. 

Heating  Apparatus — Unfortunately  there  is  at  present  no 
furnace  on  the  market  which  can  be  recommended  for  use  in 
evaporators.  The  ‘‘hop  stoves”  generally  used  in  hop  kilns 
are  of  good  size,  but  are  too  light  in  construction  to  stand  the 
continuous  firing  at  utmost  capacity  for  periods  of  40  to  ^10 
days  necessary  in  an  apple  kiln.  The  large  cast-iron  furnace 
Aveighing  1500  to  2000  pounds  each,  universally  used  in  East- 
ern evaporators,  are  especially  designed  for  burning  hard  coal. 
Soft  coal  cannot  be  used  in  such  a furnace,  as  the  pipes  prompt- 
ly become  clogged,  while  the  opening  of  the  door  in  firing 
])ermits  the  escape  of  dense  clouds  of  smoke  and  soot,  covering 
the  fruit  with  black  flecks  which  completely  ruin  it.  Since  the 


52 


XL  Sectional  side  elevation  of  eiglit-kiln  evaporator. 


53 


S6  FT 


])riees  of  hard  coal  entirely  prohibit  its  use,  furnaces  of  the 
prevailing  types  in  use  in  the  East  are  not  available  to  the 
Northwestern  evaporator,  who  is  restricted  to  wood  as  the  only 
fuel  which  he  can  successfully  and  economically  use  in  his 
kilns. 

One  or  two  makers  of  evaporator  machinery  make  heavy, 
durable  cast-iron  furnaces  intended  to  be  fired  with  wood, 
and  tliese  are  in  successful  use  in  some  sections  of  the  United 
States  and  Canada.  All  such  furnaces  with  which  the  writer 
is  acquainted,  however,  have  the  serious  defect  that  the  fire- 
boxes are  at  most  36  to  42  inches  in  length  and  not  more  than 
12  inches  in  height,  while  the  door  is  usually  10x10  inches.  Pour 
foot  cord  wood  must  be  cut  in  two  and  the  larger  pieces  split, 
which  entails  considerable  expense,  while  the  fire  box  cannot 


Fig.  XIII.  First-floor  plan,  eight  kiln  evaporator.  Paring  table 
arranged  for  double  row  of  paring  machines  with  trimmers  at  a 
separate  table. 


55 


be  properly  filled  with  the  resulting  two-foot  lengths.  Conse- 
quently, the  fires  demand  constant  attention  and  the  temper- 
atures produced  fluctuate  considerably.  If  some  foundr}"  cen- 
trally located  in  the  Northwest  would  put  upon  the  market  a 
lieavy,  well  made,  durable  wood-burning  furnace,  having  a fire 
box  long  enough  to  take  four  foot  wood  and  at  least  24  inches 
in  width,  with  doors  20x24  inches,  it  would  find  general  favor. 
Cord  wood  could  be  used  is  it  comes  from  the  forest,  and  it 
would  be  relatively  easy  to  maintain  a constant  temperature 
with  a minimum  of  attention.  It  is  hoped  that  such  a furnace 
may  soon  be  placed  on  the  market.  - 

The  most  satisfactory  source  of  heat  is  a well  built  brick 
or  stone  furnace,  properly  lined  with  the  best  quality  of  hre 


Fig.  XIV.  Second-floor  plan,  eight-kiln  evaporator.  Grader  has 
apple  conveyor  running  longitudinally  over  paring  table  and  open- 
ing at  points  marked  F into  hoppers  which  deliver  apples  by  gravity 
to  the  paring  table.  Bleacher  delivers  apples  to  slicer,  from  which 
a conveyor  carries  them  down  the  alley  between  kilns,  delivering 
them  at  any  desired  point. 


56 


brick.  Such  a furnace  should  be  at  least  4 feet  wide  and  deep 
enough  to  take  wood  in  8 foot  lengths  of  any  size  that  one  man 
can  readily  handle.  If  the  walls  are  properly  laid  with  a good 
quality  of  mortar,  such  a furnace  is  practically  everlasting 
except  that  the  fire  brick  lining  will  need  repairs  and  par- 
tial replacement  every  second  season,  while  the  first  secti»ms 
of  pipe  will  scarcely  stand  more  than  one  year’s  use. 


SiDC  EtcvarioN 


Fig.  XV.  Sectional  side  elevation,  eight-kiln  evaporator.  K,  kiln 
with  jacket-and-hopper  construction.  Paring  table  has  endless  belt 
conveyor  to  trimming  table,  from  which  the  elevator  delivers  to 
bleacher.  Endless  belt  from  grader  delivers  apples  to  hoppers  F 
over  paring  tables  through  openings  marked  G. 

The  piping  of  the  furnace  is  extremely  important,  since  the 
operator  must  depend  upon  the  arrangemtmt  of  his  pipes  imdh 
for  utilization  of  the  heat  produced  and  for  its  uniform  distri- 
bution to  the  drying  floor.  Several  systems  of  piping  are  ui 
use,  each  with  a number  of  strong  advocates,  but  all  are  alike 
in  that  they  use  in  an  18x18  or  20x20  foot  kiln,  175  to  250  feet 
of  8 or  10  inch  pipe,  disposed  in  a series  of  loops  or  coils  be- 
neath the  kiln  floor.  The  d escription  which  follows,  if 
studied  in  connection  with  the  diagrammatic  sketches  (Fig. 
XVI  a.  b.  c.)  will  make  the  method  of  arrangement  clear. 
The  ''single  pipe  system,”  in  which  the  piping  makes  one 
circuit  about  the  room,  is  used  where  the  location  oe  the 
building  or  the  construction  of  the  flues  makes  it  impossible 
to  secure  an  ample  draft.  The  "double  pipe  system,”  in 
which  the  pipe,  after  being  carried  around  (the  walls,  is 
brought  back  across  the  floor  before  it  passes  into  the  flue, 
is  used  in  kilns  of  large  size  or  wherever  ample  draft  can 


57 


be  secured.  The  double  pipe  system  is  preferable,  since  more 
of  the  heat  is  utilized  and  its  better  distribution  to  the  floors 
results  in  more  uniform  drying  than  can  be  secured  llie 
single  system. 

No  matter  what  system  of  piping  may  be  adopted,  con- 
nection with  the  furnace  collar  is  made  by  means  of  a section 
of  special  double  thickness  Kussia  iron  pipe,  10  inches  in 
diameter..  This  is  fitted  with  a T joint,  the  whole  standing 
erect  and  rising  to  about  4^/^  feet  below  the  kiln  floor.  To 
the  T elbows  are  fitted,  and  two  parallel  lines  of  pipe  10 
inches  in  diameter  are  led  from  these  across  the  room  to  a 
point  directly  opposite  the  chimney  and  about  22  inches 
from  the  wall.  These  pipes  are  given  such  an  inclination 
as  will  bring  them  at  this  point  to  within  SYj  feet  of  the 
kiln  floor;  a nearer  approach  would  be  dangerous  because 
of  the  high  temperature  of  the  pipes.  At  this  point  ell)()ws 
are  fitted  on  and  the  two  pipes  are  carried  in  opposite  di- 
rections around  the  walls  of  the  room  to  the  flue.  In  case 
the  “single  pipe  system’’  is  used,  these  lines  may  be  given 
sufficient  upward  inclination  to  bring  them  to  within  24  to 
30  inches  of  the  floor  at  the  flue,  where  the  two  pipes  are 
united  by  means  of  a T joint  fitted  with  dampers,  which  enters 
the  flue  (figure  XVI  a).  If  the  double  pipe  system  is  to  be 
used,  the  rise  given  the  pipe  to  this  point  must  be  more  grad- 
ual, and  the  two  lines,  instead  of  being  united,  are  carried 
back  and  forth  across  the  room  in  one  of  the  methods  in- 
dicated in  the  diagrams  (fig.  XVI  b,  c,)  Avith  such  upAvard 


A,  single  pipe  system,  used  in  small  kilns  or  when  jacket-and-hopper 
construction  is  employed.  B,  double-pipe  system,  employed  in  large 
kilns  or  tunnels.  C,  a still  more  efficient  double-pipe  system. 


58 


inclination  as  will  bring  them  to  the  flue  not  less  than  20  to 
24  inches  from  the  kiln  floor.  In  the  double  pipe  system, 
10  inch  or  9'  inch  pipe  is  generally  used  for  the  first  circuit 
of  the  walls,  while  8 inch  pipe  may  be  used  for  the  remainder 
of  the  system.  Wires  or  light  chains  are  used  to  suspend  the 
pipe  from  the  joists  of  the  kiln  floor. 

In  order  to  prevent  overheating  of  the  area  immediately 
above  the  furnace,  a deflector  is  employed.  This  may  be 
simply  a sheet  of  iron  having  the  same  dimensions  as  the  fur- 
nace and  spiked  to  the  lower  edge  of  the  joists.  A better 
plan  is  to  cut  and  fold  the  edges  of  the  sheet  so  as  to  give 
it  the  form  of  a low,  flat  inverted  hopper,  and  to  suspend  H 
by  means  of  chains  so  that  it  may  be  raised  or  lowered  with 


hopper  construction.  P,  furnace,  enclosed  by  jacketing  wall  upon 
which  base  of  hopper  rests.  H.C.,  coils  of  piping.  K.P.,  kiln  flue. 
Paring  table  and  elevators  for  apples  and  waste,  position  of  bleach- 
er, and  location  of  shafting  are  also  indicated,  as  is  the  construction 
of  the  ventilator. 


59 


changes  in  the  temperature  at  which  the  kiln  is  being  oper- 
ated. 

The  efficiency  of  the  furnace  may  be  very  considerably 
increased  and  the  expense  of  piping  materially  reduced  by 
the  adoption  of  the  “ jacket-and-hopper”  plan  of  construction 
in  the  furnace  rooms.  In  Ibis  plan  of  construction  the  fur- 


Fig.  XVIII.  Detail  of  jacket-and-hopper  construction.  Detail  of 
framing  of  hopper  shown  on  left-hand  side  and  front,  framing  cov- 
ered by  metal  lath  with  cement  partially  in  place  at  back. 


nace  is  enclosed,  at  a distance  of  12  or  18  inches  from  its 
walls,  by  a wall  of  stone,  brick,  or  concrete  which  rises  to  a 
height  of  about  six  feet,  thus  forming  a rectangular  box  in- 
side which  the  furnace  stands.  Each  wall  of  this  structure 
has  at  its  middle  an  opening,  3 feet  in  length  by  18  inches  in 
height,  placed  6 inches  above  the  floor  level,  and  at  the  front 


60 


of  the  furnace,  these  is  a large  sheet-iron  door  thru  which 
the  furnace  tender  enters.  Upon  the  “jacket”  thus  formed, 
the  “hopper”  is  built  by  constructing  a frame  of  2x4  scant- 
ling extending  from  the  top  of  the  jacket  wall  outward  and 
upward  to  the  wall  of  the  room  just  below  the  kiln  floor. 
Upon  the  frame  thus  made,  perforated  metal  lath  is  nailed 
and  the  “hopper”  is  completed  by  covering  the  lath  with  a 
% or  1/2  inch  layer  of  cement.  The  furnace  thus  stands  at 
the  bottom  of  a shallow,  flaring  hopper  which  is  roofed  by 
the  kiln  floor,  with  a current  of  air  entering  thru  the  venti- 
lators of  the  jacket,  becoming  warmed  as  it  passes  over  tlie 
furnace  and  rising  thru  the  floor  above.  (See  diagram,  fig. 
XVIII).  This  arrangement  reduces  loss  of  heat  by  lateral 
radiation  to  a minimum,  gives  more  uniform  distribution  of 
- the  heat  to  all  parts  of  the  kiln  floor,  and  permits  the  use 
of  the  single  pipe  system  with  satisfactory  results.  Some 
operators  claim  that  the  efficiency  of  their  plants  is  increased 
25  per  cent  by  the  adoption  of  this  arrangement,  since  the 
time  required  for  drying  is  materially  shortened  even  when 
the  floors  are  more  heavily  loaded  with  fruit. 

The  chimney  should  be  built  in  the  common  wall  between 
two  kilns.  It  should  rest  upon  a solid  stone  or  concrete  col- 
umn extending  up  to  within  18  inches  of  the  point  of  entrance 
of  the  flues.  There  should  be  no  air  openings  into  the  chim- 
ney below  the  flues,  as  they  will  increase  the  consumption 
of  fuel  and  cause  trouble  in  other  ways.  The  chimney  should 
l)e  16  inches  square  if  two  flues  open  into  it.  iMany  operators 
insist  that  better  results  are  obtained  if  the  chimney  is  made 
double  all  the  way  up,  each  opening  being  10x12  or  12x12 
inches,  but  the  writer  has  seen  so  many  plants  with  two  kilns 
piped  into  a single  16x16  flue  that  he  thinks  a separate  flue  for 
each  pipe  entirely  unnecessary.  The  chimney  should  extend 
far  enough  above  the  roof  to  insure  good  draft  and  to  pre- 
vent damage  to  fruit  by  the  blowing  of  smoke  and  soot  down 
the  ventilators  on  windy  days. 

The  Kiln  Floor — The  kiln  floor  is  constructed  of  wooden 
strips,  or  slats,  usually  % or  1 inch  square  but  beveled  on 


61 


two  sides  so  that  one  face  is  % inch  wide.  These  are  nailed 
to  the  joists,  narrow  face  down,  and  are  spaced  i/4  or  % inch 
apart.  There  are  thus  left  narrow  openings  thru  which  the 
warm  air  rises,  and  as  the  beveling  of  the  slats  makes  these 
openings  wider  below  than  above,  they  cannot  become  clogged 
by  particles  falling  thru.  In  the  Eastern  evaporators,  kiln 
slats  are  made  of  l)asswood,  maple,  beech,  or  poplar,  and 
man}’  makers  and  dealers  in  evaporating  machinery  carry 
such  slats  in  stock.  Any  hard  wood  which  does  not  impart 
flavor  to  the  fruit  or  warp  badly  can  be  used,  but  fir  or  other 
coniferous  wood  is  worse  than  useless,  as  the  constant  high 
temperature  will  bring  out  the  resin  and  give  the  fruit  a 
persistent  odor  and  flavor  which  ruins  it. 

After  the  kiln  floor  is  in  place,  it  is  oiled  a fev/  times  at 
intervals  of  two  or  three  days  Avith  lard  oil,  paraffin  oil,  or  a 
mixture  of  boiled  linseed  oil  and  tallow,  applied  very  hot, 
in  order  to  thoroly  saturate  the  slats.  This  prevents  sticking 
of  the  fruit.  After  the  kiln  is  in  use,  one  of  two  oilings  each 
season  will  keep  the  floor  in  good  condition,  but  it  should  be 
thoroly  scrubbed  with  strong,  hot  soapsuds  at  least  once,  pre- 
ferably twice,  each  Aveek  during  the  season. 

Steam-heated  Kilns — Kilns  in  Avhich  the  heat  was  furnished 
by  coils  of  steam  pipe  placed  beneath  the  drying  floor  Averc 
at  one  time  rather  Avidely  used  in  Avestern  NeAv  York,  but 
have  in  recent  years  become  extremely  rare.  The  writer 
examined  tAA^o  plants  of  this  type  AAuth  considerable  (‘-ir.Ti.  in 
the  belief  that  this  method  of  heating  has  decided  advantages 
in  regions  which  are  restricted  to  soft  coal  or  Avood  as  fuel. 
Unfortunately  it  was  impossible  to  find  in  Avestern  Ncav  York 
a steam  plant  of  any  considerable  size,  or  one  in  which  modern 
business  methods  Avere  employed.  The  plants  seen  were  sm-ill, 
had  been  built  and  were  operated  largely  or  aaToIIv  by  the 
owners  and  their  families,  and  absoluteiv  no  rec  o’ds  of  cost 
of  building  materials  or  of  construction  had  been  kept,  Avhile 
such  data  as  to  cost  of  operation  as  could  be  secured  Avere 
merely  crude  estimates.  Such  data  is  of  little  value  and  is 
rendered  less  valuable  by  the  extremely  unsystematic,  un- 


62 


business-like  methods  which  were  in  use  in  both  plants,  but 
it  indicates  that  the  cost  of  construction  was  about  10  per 
cent  greater  than  in  ordinary  kilns  of  equal  capacity  in  the 
same  locality,  while  the  operating  costs  were  practically  the 
same. 

A steam  plant  located  near  North  Chili,  New  York,  had 
two  16x16  foot  drying  floors,  with  a total  capacity  of  150 
bushels  per  day.  The  drying  floor  was  placed  three  feet 
above  the  ground  level,  so  that  the  building  was  only  10 
feet  in  height  at  the  eaves.  From  the  boiler  two  main  feed 
pipes  were  led  off,  one  to  each  of  the  drying  floors.  One- 
inch  pipe  was  used  for  the  heating  coils,  which  were  placed 
12  inches  beneath  the  drying  floors.  Each  heating  coil 
opened  directly  out  of  the  main  feed  pipe,  and  consisted  of 
three  16  foot  lengths  of  pipe,  connected  by  elbow  unions  so 
that  they  passed  three  times  across  the  floor,  four  inches 
apart,  before  entering  the  return  pipe.  Each  16-foot  floor 
had  sixteen  such  coils,  each  49  feet  in  length  inclusive  of 
elbows  and  unions,  or  a total  length  of  784  feet  of  1-inch 
pipe  for  256  square  feet  of  drying  floor  in  each  kiln.  The 
10-horse-power  boiler  supplied  power  for  running  parers  as 
well  as  for  operating  a series  of  fans  which  forced  the  warm 
air  thru  the  fruit,  and  when  the  boiler  was  run  at  50  pounds 
pressure  the  drying  of  apples  spread  in  a five-inch  layer 
occupied  about  18  hours  when  the  fans  were  not  used,  13  to 
14  hours  when  they  were  operated. 

Despite  the  fact  that  evaporation  by  steam  has  been  aban- 
doned in  regions  having  abundant  supplies  of  cheap  hard 
coal,  the  method  has  certain  advantages  which  in  the  writer’s 
opinion  make  it  desirable  that  it  be  experimented  with  in  the 
Northwest.  Briefly  stated  these  advantages  are: 

1.  The  expense  of  construction  of  the  evaporator  building 
may  be  much  less,  since  the  building  need  be  only  10-12  feet 
in  height,  while  the  fact  that  danger  from  fire  is  negligible 
permits  the  use  of  wood  construction. 

2,  The  cheaper  grades  of  soft  coal  or  slack  may  be  used  in 
regions  where  wood  is  scarce  or  expensive  and  the  labor  of 


63 


firing  is  much  less  than  in  a kiln  of  corresponding  capacity. 

3.  It  is  much  easier  to  maintain  any  desired  constant  tem- 
perature with  steam  than  with  direct  radiation,  since  auto- 
matic regulators  can  easily  be  installed.  Consequently  it  is 
possible  to  improve  the  quality  of  the  product  and  to  shorten 
the  time  spent  in  drying. 

Over  against  these  advantages  must  be  set  the  disadvantages, 
namely  that  the  initial  expense  of  purchase  and  installation 
of  steam  piping  is  considerable  while  the  deterioration  of 
such  pipe  is  rather  rapid,  while  a steam  boiler  will  usually  be 
useful  for  no  other  purpose  hence  constitutes  a charge  of 
considerable  magnitude  against  the  plant. 

Taken  altogether,  the  advantages  of  absolute  control  of 
temperature  during  the  drying  process  and  of  being  able  to 
use  an}^  sort  of  fuel  make  the  method  one  which  has  con- 
siderable promise  of  value,  and  the  writer  believes  tluu  de- 
spite the  very  large  number  of  unsuccessful  methods  of  drying' 
by  steam  which  have  been  devised  in  the  past,  success tul  and 
economical  methods  may  yet  be  worked  out.  Such  methods  will 
be  developed,  however,  by  the  application  of  steam  to  other 
types  of  evaporators  than  the  kiln.  The  use  of  successive 
tiers  of  trays,  each  heated  ])y  coils  of  pipe  placed  beneath, 
with  fans  to  control  the  circulation  of  air,  Avill  give  large 
drying  capacity  in  a relatively  small  compass  and  v/ill  per- 
mit less  expensive  construction,  since  the  danger  of  fire  will 
be  practically  absent.  Several  plants  which  employ  stacks 
of  trays  heated  by  coils  are  in  course  of  construction  in  the 
Northwest,  but  none  of  them  liave  been  subjected  to  lln'i  t(^st 
of  practical  use  in  competition  with  other  methods  (d*  drying 
for  a sufficient  length  of  time  to  enable  one  to  say  whether 
any  of  them  will  be  commercially  successful. 

THE  TUNNEL  EVAPORATOR 

The  need  of  the  prune  gr^-wing  districts  of  the  Nortliwest 
for  an  efficient  and  economical  method  of  drying  prunes 
led  to  the  development  in  the  early  nineties  of  a great  variety 
ol  aporating  machines.  In  a publication  entiebid.  ‘'I'runes 


64 


in  Oregon,”  issued  as  Bulletin  45  of  the  Oregon  Agricultural 
Experiment  Station  in  June,  1897,  Professor  U.  P.  Hedrick, 
at  that  time  horticulturist  of  the  Oregon  Station,  described 
seven  types  of  prune  evaporators,  each  known  by  the  name 
of  its  manufacturer  or  patentee,  then  in  use.  Two  years 
later,  J.  A.  Balmer,  horticulturist  of  the  Washington  Agricul- 
tural Experiment  Station,  (Prunes,  Bulletin  38,  Washington 
Agricultural  Experiment  Station,  May,  1899)  described  four 
of  these  evaporators  with  at  least  two  others,  as  being  at  that 
time  rather  generally  used  in  Washington.  Of  all  these  types 
of  evaporators,  only  two  have  stood  the  test  of  years  of  prac- 
tical use,  and  it  would  probably  be  impossible  to  find  one 
of  the  others  in  operation  at  the  present  time. 

The  prune  tunnel  or  tunnel  evaporator  as  used  today  in 
the  Northwest  has  been  gradually  perfected  by  modification 
of  the  “Allen  Evaporator,”  manufactured  and  patented  by 
W.  K.  Allen,  of  Newberg,  Oregon,  and  described  by  both 
Hedrick  and  Balmer  in  the  publications  just  cited  as  in  rather 
general  use  in  Washington  and  Oregon.  In  so  far  as  one  can 
judge  from  the  rather  unsatisfactory  drawings  and  descrip- 
tions given  by  these  authors,  the  original  Allen  evaporator 
had  most  of  the  essential  desirable  features  of  the  modern 
tunnel,  with  the  very  great  disadvantage  that  the  fruit,  once 
placed  in  the  tunnel,  was  out  of  sight  or  control  of  the  oper- 
ator until  drying  had  been  completed. 

Tunnel  evaporators  have  never  come  into'  general  use  in 
those  parts  of  the  United  States  in  which  apples  are  the  chief 
fruit  to  be  evaporated,  since  the  labor  involved  in  handling 
the  fruit  on  trays  makes  the  process  slightly  more  expensive 
than  drying  on  kilns.  Wherever  prunes  and  berries  make  up 
a considerable  part  of  the  total  volume  of  fruits  to  be  dried, 
tunnel  evaporators  may  advantageously  be  used,  since  prunes 
must  of  necessity  be  handled  in  trays,  while  loganberries  and 
raspberries  make  a very  much  better  product  when  so  treated. 

In  its  essential  feature  the  tunnel  evaporator  consists  of  a 
long,  narroAV  room,  with  the  floor  and  ceiling  inclined  uni- 
formly from  end  to  end,  and  with  a furnace  below  the  floor. 


65 


Tlie  room  is  cut  into  a series  of  narrow  chambers, ' the  ‘‘tun- 
nels,’’ by  parallel  partitions,  which  may  be  solid  or  merely  an 
open  framework  of  slats.  Jn  some  of  the  larger  and  more 
elaborate  plants  the  trays  upon  which  the  fruit  is  spread  are 
loaded  upon  trucks  fitted  with  an  open  framework  to  support 
and  separate  them,  and  these  trucks  are  rolled  in  one  behind 
another  at  the  upper  end  of  the  tunnel  until  it  is  filled.  The 
dry  fruit  is  removed  at  the  lower  end  of  the  tunnel  by  with- 
drawing the  truck  carrying  it,  when  the  others  move  down 
by  force  of  gravity,  permitting  a new  truck  to  be  rolled  in 
at  the  upper  end.  This  arrangement  was  a feature  of  the  Allen 
Evaporator.  It  is  objectionable  in  that  the  upper  and  lower 
trays  of  any  given  truck  do  not  dry  at  equal  rates,  necessi- 
tating overdrying  of  the  lower  trays  or  transfer  of  the  upper 
<>nes  to  another  truck,  and  even  more  objectionable  in  that 
the  operator  cannot  learn  how  the  fruit  toward  the  middle 
of  the  tunnel  is  drying  except  by  rolling  out  all  the  trucks 
Tintil  that  which  he  desires  to  inspect  is  reached.  Consequently, 
trucks  are  no  longer  generally  employed  in  tunnel  evaporators, 
and  have  been  replaced  by  an  arrangement  which  permits  in- 
dividual trays  to  be  moved  Avith  little  difficulty.  To  build 
this,  the  individual  tunnels  of  a group  or  series  are  separated 
one  from  the  other  by  partitions  or  at  least  by  a framing  of 
2x4  studs.  To  these  partitions  or  to  the  studs  are  nailed  a 
series  of  cleats,  usually  made  of  1-inch  strips,  2 inches 

wide,  nailed  flat,  extending  from  end  to  end  of  the  tunnel 
parallel  with  the  inclined  floor,  and  placed  at  equal  distances, 
preferably  4 inches  from  center  to  center,  apart.  These  cleats 
form  a series  of  tracks,  one  above  the  other,  which  support 
the  trays  upon  Avhich  the  fruit  is  spread,  and  the  tunnel  is 
fdled  by  pushing  the  trays  in  one  after  another  at  the  upper 
end  of  the  tunnel,  and  moving  them  along  the  tracks  until  all 
are  loaded.  The  heated  air  is  admitted  at  the  lower  end  of 
the  tunnel,  from  a furnace  placed  in  the  room,  beneath,  rises 
thru  the  successive  series  of  trays,  and  passes  off,  loaded  with 
moisture,  thru  a ventilator  shaft  at  the  opposite  higher  end. 
Steady  air  movement  is  secured  by  an  arrangement  of  air 


66 


intakes  in  the  furnace  room,  essentially  identical  with  that 
already  described  for  the  kiln  evaporator. 

All  that  has  been  said  in  the  preceding  pages  as  to  the' 
relative  merits  of  various  building  materials  for  constructing 
kiln  evaporators  applies  equally  well  when  the  plant  is  to  be 
of  the  tunnel  type.  The  advantages  and  economy  of  perma- 
nent fire-proof  construction  are  the  same,  as  is  the  necessity 
for  having  the  portion  of  the  building  in  which  the  actual 
drying  goes  on  as  nearly  air-tight  as  possible  and  with  the 
loss  of  heat  by  radiation  reduced  to  the  lowest  possible  min- 
imum. 

The  })uilding  must  consist  of  two  portions,  a portion  in  which 
the  preparation  of  fruit  for  drying  is  carried  on  and  in  vv^hich 
the  dried  fruit,  trays  not  in  use,  and  fruit  awaiting  preparation 
can  be  stored,  and  a second  portion  in  which  the  actual  dry- 
ing is  accomplished.  In  the  first  portion  or  preparation  room 
there  will  be  needed  the  same  equipment  described  in  con- 
nection with  kiln  evaporators,  and  its  arrangement  may  con- 
veniently be  essentially  that  shown  by  the  plans  for  such  plants. 
If  berries  or  prunes  are  to  be  dried  in  any  quantity,  there  vdll 
be  needed  space  on  the  ground  floor  of  the  building  for  spread- 
ing tables  and  for  storage  of  trays  and  of  boxes  of  fruit  brought 
in  from  the  orchards.  Notwithstanding  these  facts,  the  plans 
of  two  kiln  and  four  kiln  evaporator  buildings  may  very  Avell 
serve  as  suggestions  for  buildings  for  tunnel  evaporators. 
Tunnels  of  a given  capacity  occupy  less  than  one-hail:  as 
much  floor  space  as  kilns  of  the  same  capacity.  The  tunnels 
may  be  constructed  in  a portion  of  the  space  given  to  kilns 
in  the  plans,  and  the  remaining  space  becomes  available  for 
work  tables,  storage  of  fruit,  trays,  etc.  The  plans  of  kiln 
plants  have  purposely  been  so  designed  that  when  tunnels- 
instead  of  kilns  are  placed  in  them,  the  paring  tables, 
bleacher,  apple  bins,  and  slicer  will  be  as  little  in  the  way 
as  possible  when  the  building  is  used  for  drying  berries  or 
prunes.  It  is  believed,  therefore,  that  these  drawings  and 
suggestions  give  as  much  aid  as  possible  in  a publication  of 
this  general  character,,  since  each  builder  of  a tunnel  evap- 


67 


1 


orator  must  work  out  the  details  of  the  plan  for  a building  I 
best  adapted  to  his  particular  needs.  Hence  the  detailed  | 
discussion  which  follows  is  confined  to  the  construction  and  1 
operation  of  the  actual  dr3dng  units,  the  tunnels. 

The  Tunnels — The  number  of  tunnels  to  be  constructed 
must  be  determined  in  every  case  by  the  volume  of  fruit  to 
be  handled.  It  needs  to  be  emphasized,  however,  that  the  1 
length  and  size  of  the  individual  tunnel  is  not  to  be  modified 
at  the  pleasure  of  the  builder.  It  is  usually  difficult  or  im- 
possible to  secure  satisfactory  and  economical  results  with  j 
tunnels  more  than  20  feet  in  length,  since  further  increase  ’ 
in  length  retards  air  movement  and  therefore  slows  down  the 
drying.  A tunnel  higher  than  six  feet  or  carrying  more  than  ^ 

16  or  18  tiers  of,  trays  will  dry  very  slowly  on  me  upper 
trays,  while  the  work  of  removing  or  inserting  trays  at  the 
top  Avill  be  inconvenient  and  fatiguing.  For  the  sake  of 
convenience  in  handling,  three  feet  in  width  and  four  feet 
in  length  should  be  the  limit  in  size  of  the  trays.  Conse- 
quently, tunnels  20x6x3  feet  are  as  large  as  can  be  efficiently 
operated,  and  attempts  to  increase  any  of  the  dimensions 
are  likely  to  result  in  constant  trouble  and  lowered  effi- 
ciency. A tunnel  of  the  dimensions  just  indicated  will  carry  j 

18  tiers  of  five  3x4  trays,  or  90  trays,  each  having  a drying  ; 

surface  of  12  square  feet.  Each  tray  when  spread  to  a depth  j 
of  iy2  inches  with  apples  will  hold  about  25  pounds  of  fresh  1 

fruit,  giving  a total  capacity  of  2250  pounds,  a quantity  ' 

which  would  be  yielded  by  65-70  bushels  of  apples.  Such  I 

trays  will  carry  25  to  30  pounds  of  prunes  or  16  to  20  pounds  ' 
of  raspberries  or.  loganberries.  The  time  required  for  dry-  j 
ing  will  depend  to  such  a degree  upon  the  circulation  or  air 
thru  the  tunnels  that  any  statements  must  be  taken  as  only 
indicative  of  what  may  be  expected ; apples  will  require  7 
to  16  hours,  berries  12  to  17,  and  prunes  28  to  40  hours  at  the 
temperatures  recommended  in  a later  aragraph. 

The  floor  of  the  tunnel  slopes  uniformly  from  end  to  end, 
the  inclination  most  generally  employed  being  IV2  or  2 inches 
per  foot  of  length.  Two  differing  types  of  construction  are  , 


68 


Fig.  XIX.  Sectional  side  view  of  tunnel  evaporator.  Tunnel  2 0x6x3  feet,  carrying  18  tiers  of  trays 
J^ree  air  spaces  of  7 Vs  inches  above  upper  tray  and  1 1/2  inches  between  floor  and  lowest  tray.  Furnace  di- 
rectly beneath  opening  3x3  feet  in  size  at  lower  end  of  tunnel.  Piping  of  furnace  extended  beneath  floor  of 
second  story  to  chimney  at  side  of  building. 


l 


69 


employed;  in  one  the  tunnel  is  tightly  floored  with  sheet 
iron  thruout  its  length  except  for  a distance  of  two  to  four 
feet  at  its  lower  end,  which  is  directly  over  the  furnace.  'In 
the  second  type  the  tunnel  has  no  floor,  but  is  continuous 
with  the  furnace  room.  In  either  case  the  furnace  stands 
beneath  the  lower  end  and  an  arrangement  of  piping  similar 
to  that  described  as  being  used  in  kiln  evaporators  distributes 
the  heat  thruout  the  length  of  the  tunnel.  Each  of  these 
arrangements  has  its  strong  advocates;  that  last  described 
obviously  makes  somewhat  better  use  of  the  heat  produced 
by  the  fuel. 

If  a number  of  tunnels  are  to  be  constructed  it  is  advisable 
to  build  them  in  sets  of  three  arranged  side  by  side  and 
heated  by  the  same  furnace.  In  ease  the  tunnels  are  are  to 
be  constructed  in  blocks  of  three,  the  furnace  room  should 
be  made  of  the  same  size  as  the  block  of  three  tunnels,  ex- 
cept that  it  is  two  feet  longer,  or  22x10  feet  inside  the  walls. 
This  added  two  feet  gives  space  for  the  furnace,  which  is  to  be 
set  at  the  lower  end  of  the  tunnels  (see  diagram  fig  XIX). 
The  walls  of  the  furnace  room  may  be  built  of  stone,  con- 
crete, concrete  blocks,  or  metal  lath  and  plaster.  The  outer 
walls  of  the  group  of  tunnels  are  merely  upward  continuations 
of  the  walls  of  the  furnace  room  and  may  be  built  of  matched 
lumber  nailed  to  2x4  framing,  or  better,  of  metal  lath  and 
plaster. 

The  two  ends  of  each  tunnel  are  formed  by  the  doors,  which 
must  be  close  fitting,  of  a height  and  width  equal  to  the  in- 
side dimensions  of  the  tunnel,  and  must  swing  back  far  enough 
to  permit  ready  insertion  or  withdrawal  of  trays.  The  roof  of 
the  tunnels  should  be  of  matched  lumber.  The  ventilating  shaft, 
for  three  tunnels  each  20x3  feet,  should  be  not  less  than  5x2 
feet  in  cross  section,  should  have  a damper  at  its  base,  and 
should  extend  well  above  the  peak  of  the  roof  of  the  building. 
(See  diagram  IV). 

The  partitions  separating  the  individual  tunnels  are  built 
of  matched  lumber  and  are  carried  up  to  within  12  or  18  inches 
of  the  roof  of  the  tunnel.  Some  operators  omit  these  par- 


70 


titions  entirely,  merely  making  a framework  of  2x4s  to  which 
the  cleats  which  support  the  trays  are  nailed,  so  that  the 
whole  interior  of  the  three  tunnels  is  one  continuous  cham- 
ber. If  the  tunnels  are  walled  up,  the  opening  of  one  of  the 
doors  to  insert  or  withdraAv  a tray  interferes  with  the  drying 
in  that  tunnel  only,  whereas  in  the  absence  of  such  walls,  the 
opening  of  any  door  results  in  the  cooling  down  of  the  en- 
tire system.  Even  were  this  not  the  case,  the  more  uniform 
and  rapid  movement  of  air  thru  the  tunnels  and  the  com- 
parative freedom  from  dead  air  pockets  secured  by  the  sep- 
arating walls  well  repays  the  expense  of  their  construction. 

The  Furnace  Room — If  built  in  accordance  with  the  sug- 
festions  made  above,  the  furnace  room  will  be  22x10  feet  in 
size.  The  height  to  the  floor  at  the  lower  end  of  the  tunnel 
should  be  7 feet;  a rise  of  iy2  inches  per  foot  in  the  floor 
would  give  a height  of  9^/2  feet  at  the  opposite  end,  while  a 
2-inch  rise  would  give  a height  of  10  feet  4 inches.  The  walls 
may  be  of  stone,  brick,  concrete,  or  metal  lath  and  plaster; 
if  built  of  wood  they  must  be  lined  with  asbestos  sheeting 
to  reduce  the  danger  of  fire.  Since  the  cost  of  such  a lining 
will  bring  the  expense  of  construction  very  nearly  up  to  that 
of  a concrete  wall,  it  is  the  part  of  wisdom  to  cut  the  fire  risk 
to  a minimum  by  avoiding  wood  altogether. 

Adequate  provision  for  an  abundant  supply  of  air  is  ab- 
solutely necessary.  For  three  tunnels  of  the  size  here  sug- 
gested, the  furnace  room  should  have  four  air  inlets,  one  in 
the  center  of  each  of  the  walls,  each  3x11/2  feet  in  size  and 
placed  about  six  inches  above  the  ground.  These  will  give 
a total  air  inflow  of  2592  square  inches.  It  will  rarely  be 
necessary  to  open  all  of  the  inlets  to 'their  full  capacity,  and 
sliding  doors  should  be  provided  in  order  that  any  of  the  in- 
lets may  be  partially  or  wholly  closed  at  will,  but  there  will 
be  an  occasional  still,  humid  day  when  the  entire  capacity  of 
the  air  intakes  will  be  used. 

If  the  furnace  room  occupies  only  part  of  the  lower 
floor  of  a larger  building,  provision  must  be  made  for  free 
access  of  air  to  the  intakes  on  the  enclosed  sides.  This  may 


71 


best  be  si'eured  by  excavating  the  furnace  room  to  a depth  of 
12  to  18  inches,  elevating  the  floor  of  the  remainder  of  the 
building,  and  providing  numerous  ventilating  openings  in  the 
foundation  walls  thru  which  air  may  move  freely  beneath 
the  floors  to  the  furnace  room  inlets. 

The  Furnace — The  statements  made  in  the  section  devoted 
to  heating  apparatus  for  kilns  holds  true  here.  The  only 
economical  and  durable  heating  equipment  is  a well  built 
brick  or  stone  furnace  lined  with  fired)rick,  of  sufficient  height 
and  depth  to  take  ordinary  cordwood  without  preliminary 
splitting  or  cutting  to  shorter  lengths.  The  ordinary  hop 
stove,  built  as  it  is  of  thin  sheets  of  cast  iron,  will  not  stand 
up  under  the  continuous  heavy  firing  of  a fifty  or  sixty  day 
apple  drying  season. 

If  the  tunnels  are  floored  except  for  a distance  of  two 
to  four  feet  at  the  lower  end,  the  furnace  should  stand  imme- 
diately below  this  opening  in  order  that  the  heated  air  may 
pass  directly  upward  into  the  lower  end  of  the  tunnels.  The 
fact  that  the  furnace  room  is  two  feet  longer  than  the  tun-, 
nels  permits  the  furnace  to  stand  in  this  position.  The  chim- 
ney should  be  placed  at  one  side  of  the  building,  the  pipe 
rising  from  the  furnace  should  be  fitted  with  a T joint,  and 
the  two  lines  of  pipe  carried  around  the  walls  of  the  room 
before  they  are  connected  with  the  flue,  as  described  in  the 
section  on  piping  of  kiln  furnaces,  page  — . If  the  floors 
are  of  sheet  iron,  the  pipe  may  be  brought  up  to  within  24-30 
inches  of  the  floor  and  kept  at  that  distance  in  its  passage 
around  the  room;  if  the  tunnels  have  board  floors  or  no  floors 
at  all,  it  must  be  kept  about  a foot  lower  to  prevent  over- 
heating. The  ‘bsingle  pipe”  system  of  piping  will  give  suffi- 
cient radiating  surface  and  the  distance  of  the  pipes  from  the 
walls  should  not  be  less  than  24  inches.  The  pipe  should  be 
of  the  qualitj^  recommended  for  use  with  kilu  furnaces  and 
should  be  9 inches  in  diameter.  The  chimney  should  be  at 
least  12x12  inches  inside,  if  only  one  furnace  is  piped  into  it, 
12x18  if  tAvo  are  connected  with  it.  It  should  be  solid  up 
to  AAuthin  18  inches  of  the  entrance  of  the  pipes,  and  should 


72 


extend  4 or  5 feet  above  the  roof.  As  free  access  to  both 
ends  of  the  tunnel  is  necessary,  the  chimney  should  stand  at 
the  side  of  the  building,  with  the  pipe  passing  beneath  tho 
floor  to  reach  it. 

The  Construction  of  Trays — Trays  are  l)est  made  from 
%xlV2-ineh  slats.  Cut  two  pieces  3 feet  and  two  pieces  4 feet 
long,  nail  these  together  to  form  a rectangular  frame,  4x3  feet 
and  IV2  inches  deep.  Cut  a piece  of  wire  netting  1 inch 
larger  each  way  than  the  frame,  turn  the  edges  back  to  give 
a firmer  hold  for  nailing,  and  nail  the  netting  to  the  frame. 
Now  cut  a second  set  of  slats,  and  nail  these  to  the  bottom 
of  the  tray,  taking  care  that  the  wire  is  not  allowed  to  project. 
Lastly,  nail  a wooden  strip  across  the  middle  to  prevent  warp- 
ing of  the  frame.  This  gives  a reversible  tray  which  has  no 
projecting  wires  to  tear  clothing  and  hands  or  catch  in  the 
tunnels.  The  bottom  cannot  become  loose  from  the  frame,  and 
can  be  kept  from  sagging  by  using  the  tray  either  side  up. 

Trays  should  be  made  of  the  best  grade  of  galvanized  wire 
screen  obtainable,  with  meshes  1-4  or  1-5  inch  square.  An 
inferior,  poorly  galvanized  wire  will  be  attacked  by  the  acid 
juices  of  the  fruit  with  discoloration  and  injury  to  the  pro- 
duct. The  German  government  has  long  made  strenuous  ob- 
jection to  the  use  by  her  people  of  apples  dried  on  wire  trays, 
on  the  ground  that  such  fruit  may  absorb  sufficient  quantities 
of  zinc  to  be  injurious  to  consumers.  While  this  claim  -is 
not  borne  out  by  the  results  of  chemical  analysis,  it  has  re- 
sulted in  laws  prohibiting  the  sale  in  Germany  of  apples  con- 
taining more  than  a specified  amount  of  zinc.  While  this 
amount  is  much  less  than  is  found  in  fruits  dried  on  well- 
galvanized  trays,  it  may  be  reached  or  exceeded  when  an  in- 
ferior wire  is  used  in  making  trays  or  when  trays  become 
rusty  from  long  continued  use.  The  employment  of  wooden 
trays  offers  a theoretical  solution  of  the  difficulty,  but  un- 
fortunately there  are  practical  dificulties  which  prevent  their 
use;  such  trays  are  expensive  to  make  and  heavy  to  handle, 
the  strips  making  up  the  bottom  must  be  so  narrow,  in  order 
not  to  impede  the  circulation  of  air,  that  they  are  very  fragile 


73 


unless  made  ol:  some  hard,  tough  wood  as  hickory  or  rattan^ 
and  the  fruit  sticks  rather  badly  unless  the  trays  are  oiled. 
For  all  these  reasons,  the  use  of  metal  trays  seems  practically 
unavoidable,  but  the  operator  should  promptly  discard  those 
in  which  the  destruction  of  the  zinc  coating  has  occurred.  To 
paint  such  trays  with  white  lead,  as  some  operators  do,  is 
simply  to  add  the  more  poisonous  metal  lead  to  the  fruit,  and 
such  treatment  of  tra3^s  is  fraught  Avith  danger  of  serious  conse- 
quences to  the  consumer  of  the  product. 

The  Operation  of  the  Tunnel  Evaporator — The  metlu»d  of 
operation  of  the  tunnel  evaporator  differs  from  that  of  other 
driers  in  two  respects ; first,  the  fruit  is  subjected  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  process  to  a very  moderate  temperature  which 
is  steadil.y  increased  as  the  drying  proceeds;  second,  the  Avarin 
air  at  its  first  entrance  to  the  tunnel  comes  into  contact  with 
the  dryest  fruit,  then  Avith  that  containing  more  and  more 
Avater,  until  it  reaches  fresh  fruit  and  becomes  saturated  Avith 
moisture  immediately  before  finally  passing  out  of  the  tun- 
nel. It  is  generally  claimed  that  such  fruits  as  apples  and 
berries  retain  more  of  their  natural  flavor  when  subjected 
to  a temperature  not  higher  than  120-185  degrees  Fahrenheit 
in  the  first  hours  of  dr^dng,  but  that  the  temperature  may 
advantageously  be  graduall^^  raised  to  150-165  degrees  after 
the  fruit  has  given  up  a portion  of  its  water  content.  There 
is  the  additional  advantage  that  berries  kept  at  120-185  de- 
grees until  dr^dng  is  well  l)egun  do  not  have  their  CAdlular 
structure  broken  doAvn,  hence  do  not  run  together  into  com- 
pact masses,  Avhile  neither  berries,  prunes,  nor  apples  lose  a 
portion  of  their  sugar  by  ‘d)leeding’'  or  dripping,  as  is  the 
case  Avhen  materiall.v  higher  temperatures  are  used  at  the 
outset.  Consequently  a heavier  product  Avith  a larger  sugMr 
content  is  obtained  by  maintaining  a moderate  lempijrature 
at  the  outset,  facilitating  the  drying  by  increasing  the  heat 
only  after  the  fruit  has  lost  so  much  water  that  dripping  no 
longer  occurs.  The  tunnel  evaporator  provides  at  one  time 
the  various  temperatures  needed,  since  it  is  hottest  at  the 
loAAUu*  (Mid,  direc'tly  over  the  furnace,  and  the  temperature 


74 


steadily  decreases  toward  the  upper  end;  also  the  temperature 
at  any  point  near  the  top  of  the  tunnel  is  considerably  below 
that  at  a corresponding  point  near  the  bottom.  Consequentlv, 
fresh  fruit  introduced  at  the  upper  end  of  the  tunnel,  near 
the  top,  and  pushed  along  the  tracks  until  it  is  finally  removed 
dry  at  the  lower  end,  is  subjected  to  a steadily  increasing 
temperature  thruout  its  stay  in  the  tunnel. 

The  second  distinctive  feature  of  the  tunnel  evaporator  has 
an  obvious  advantage.  The  heated  air  upon  entering  the  tun- 
nel passes  over  fruit  which  is  almost  dry  and  which  conse- 
quently gives  up  only  a small  fraction  of  the  amount  oi:  mois- 
ture which  the  air  is  capable  of  carrying.  Thence  the  air 
rises  thru  successive  layers  of  fruit,  each  containing  more 
moisture  than  its  predecessor,  until  finally,  just  before  enter- 
ing the  ventilator  shaft,  it  passes  over  trays  which  have  just 
been  inserted.  The  tunnel  thus  exactly  reverses  the  method 
of  the  old  tower  evaporator,  in  which  fresh  fruit  was  put  in 
at  the  bottom,  nearest  the  source  of  heat,  and  the  moist  air 
driven  from  it  thru  the  trays  of  partially  dried  fruit  above. 
In  such  towers,  the  air  often  had  its  temperature  so  much 
lowered  before  reaching  the  top  of  the  stack  that  a part  of 
the  moisture  carried  by  it  was  deposited  upon  the  fruit  in  the 
upper  trays.  In  the  tunnel  this  is  entirely  avoided,  and  the 
time  required  for  drying  is  very  materially  shortened  with  a 
corresponding  improvement  in  the  quality  of  the  product. 

When  the  plant  is  operating,  fires  are  kept  going  continu- 
ously in  the  furnaces  and  trays  of  fresh  fruit  are  inserted  at 
the  upper  end  of  the  tunnels  as  they  are  prepared.  During 
the  day,  the  tunnels  will  usually  be  kept  full  to  capacity  by 
the  replacement  of  the  finished  trays,  as  rapidly  as  they  are 
withdrawn,  by  trays  of  green  fruit,  which  necessitates  the 
occasional  shifting  downward  of  the  partially  dried  fruit 
to  make  room  at  the  top.  In  the  afternoon,  before  the  em- 
ploj^ees  cease  work  for  the  day,  all  other  work  may  be  stopped 
and  a sufficient  number  of  trays  filled  to  replace  those  which 
v.dll  become  dry  during  the  night.  These  are  stacked  near 
the  tunnels.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  night  man  to  keep  up  the 


fires,  to  remove  such  trays  as  become  dry,  to  keep  the  un- 
finished trays  compactly  together  in  the  lower  portion  of  the 
tunnel,  and  to  put  in  fresh  fruit  as  room  is  made  for  it.  This 
method  has  many  advantages ; it  prevents  the  overheating  and 
scorching  likely  to  occur  when  the  tunnels  are  gradually 
emptied  during  the  night;  it  utilizes  all  the  heating  value  of 
the  fuel  burned,  and  it  gives  continuous  operation  at  full 
capacity,  hence  at  a lower  cost. 

Nothing  will  aid  more  in  the  rapid  and  economical  drying 
of  the  fruit  than  constant  attention  to  the  A^entilation.  The 
air  intakes  into  the  furnace  room  must  be  adjusted  anew  with 
every  change  in  the  force  and  direction  of  the  wind,  and  the 
damper  in  the  ventilating  shaft  must  be  at  one  time  widely 
open,  at  another  almost  closed.  The  plant  cannot  be  left  in 
charge  of  a man  who  is  either  careless  or  unintelligent,  he 
must  understand  clearly  that  it  is  just  as  much  a part  of 
his  duty  to  maintain  a vigorous  draft  thru  the  tunnel  as  it 
is  to  keep  the  temperatures  shown  by  the  thermometers  in 
the  tunnels  constant,  and  that  failure  in  either  of  these  re- 
spects results  in  slower  drying  and  an  inferior  product  of 
greater  cost.  Consequently,  the  kiln  man  should  be  the  most 
intelligent  and  capable  employee  about  the  establishment.  If 
there  is  any  difference,  the  best  man  should  be  selected  a» 
night  man,  since  the  greater  humidity  and  lower  air  temper- 
atures prevailing  at  night  make  the  task  of  securing  satis- 
factory drying  during  that  period  a very  difficult  one.  Once 
the  kiln  men  are  selected  and  put  to  work,  they  should  be 
held  responsible  for  the  management  of  the  drying  rooms, 
and  no  interference  by  others  should  be  attempted  or  toler- 
ated. ‘‘Many  cooks  spoil  the  broth”  is  a proverb  never  more 
true  than  when  applied  to  the  ventilating  and  heating  of  an 
evaporator. 

THE  CARSON-SNYDER  “ALL  PURPOSE”  EVAPORATOR 

In  some  of  the  smaller  “box”  evaporators  in  household  use 
thirty  years  ago,  the  fruit  was  spread  on  a series  of  trays,  and 
a current  of  warm  air  was  driven  horizontally  across  each 
tray  from  one  side,  escaping  at  the  other,  instead  of  being 


76 


forced  vertically  upward  thru  the  entire  series,  as  is  the  case 
in  the  tunnel  evaporator.  This  principle  was  first  applied 
to  the  construction  of  a commercial  evaporator  in  a patented 
machine  called  the  Charlotte  evaporator,  and  was  later  used 
in  the  Carson  evaporator.  This  evaporator  consisted 
essentially  of  two  tunnel-like  chambers,  one  on  either  side  of 
a central  hot  air  chamber,  which  was  situated  directly  over 
a furnace.  Trays  were  pushed  into  these  chambers  along  run- 
ways, as  is  the  case  in  the  tunnels,  but  the  cleats  forming  the 
runways  were  so  arranged  that  the  trays  were  several  inches 
lower  at  the  side  next  the  central  warm  air  chamber.  Slits 
in  the  wall  admitted  the  hot  air  at  the  inner  side  of  the  trays, 
it  passed  horizontally  over  the  trays  to  the  opposite  edge, 
and  escaped  thru  a second  series  of  slits  into  a ventilating 
shaft.  Professor  U.  P.  Hedrick  describes  and  figures  such 
an  evaporator  in  a publication  to  which  reference  has  al- 
ready been  made,  stating  that  it  was  in  1897  the  most 
generally  used  type  of  evaporator  employed  in  drying  prunes 
in  the  state.  The  reports  of  the  Oregon  State  Boai^d  of  Hor- 
ticulture at  about  this  time  contain  incidental  rc.t'crences  to 
the  Carson  evaporator  as  an  efficient  and  satisfactory  prune 
drier,  but  it  seems  to  have  gone  out  of  use  and  the  writer  has 
not  been  able  to  locate  a Carson  evaporator  which  is  now  in 
operation. 

Mr.  D.  A.  Snyder  of  the  Dayton  Evaporating  and  Packing 
Company,  Dayton,  Oregon,  is  an  exceptionally  ■.  successfid 
evaporator  of  some  thirty-five  years’  experience,  and  operates 
a large  plant  in  which  he  dries  not  only  apples,  prunes  a] id 
berries,  but  also  a wide  variety  of  vegetables.  AVhile  some 
of  the  basic  principles  employed  in  the  construction  of  his 
drier  are  identical  with  those  of  the  Carson  evaporator,  jMt. 
Snyder  worked  them  out  independently,  and  as  a result  of 
years  of  study  and  experimentation  he  has  devised  so  many 
improvements  upon  Carson’s  plan  and  has  so  increased  both 
the  efficiency  and  the  economy  of  operation  of  his  plant  that 
he  deserves  chief  credit  for  the  development  of  what  I shall 
call  the  Carson-Snyder  ^‘All-purpose”  evaporator. 


77 


drying  chamber.  Di  Ci,  upper  drying  chamber.  V,  ventilator  shaft. 
Direction  of  movement  of  heated  air  indicated  by  arrows. 

78 


Mr.  Snyder’s  plant  has  two  independent  drying  units,  each 
with  its  own  heating  system.  Each  of  thesce  units  is  two 
stories  in  height,  and  as  the  construction  and  arrangement  of 
these  differ  materially,  they  must  1h'  separately  desc'ri'ned. 
The  lower  story  of  each  unit  has  a central  hot  air  chamber, 
situated  directly  over  the  furnace.  This  chamber  is  without 
a floor,  and  is  warmed  by  heated  air  rising  from  the  furnace 
room  below  it.  This  hot  air  chamber  is  18  feet  in  length,  7 
in  height,  7 in  width  at  bottom,  and  1 feet  in  width  at  the 
top.  On  either  side  of  the  hot  air  chamber  is  a drying  cham- 
ber in  which  the  trays  are  placed.  Each  of  these  drying 
chambers  is  18  feet  in  length,  7 feet  in  height,  and  2y2  feet 
in  width.  The  walls,  instead  of  being  vertical,  are  inclined 
toward  the  heating  chamber,  which  is  thus  made  8 feet  nar- 
rower at  top  than  at  bottom.  Each  drying  chamber  lias  22 
slat  runways  extending  thru  its  length,  made  of  ^Txl  inch 
slats  nailed  on  edge  to  the  studding.  These  slats  are  31^ 
inches  apart  from  center  to  center,  and  are  so  arranged  that 
the  outer  edge  of  each  tray  is  6%  inches  higher  than  the  inner 
side.  As  the  trays  used  are  1 inch  in  depth,  there  is  an  in- 
terval of  2%  inches  between  the  top  of  the  fruit  in  one  tray 
and  the  bottom  of  the  tray  above.  The  inner  wall  of  the  tun- 
nel, next  to  the  hot  air  chamber,  is  built  of  1 inch  slats, 
which  have  intervals  of  2^/2  inches  between  them,  and  these 
slats  are  so  spaced  that  the  upper  edge  of  each  slat  is  just  flush 
with  the  top,  while  its  lower  edge  is  of  course  flush  with  the 
bottom,  of  the  corresponding  tray.  The  2V2  inch  spaces  lie- 
tween  trays  are  thus  freely  open  to  the  hot  air  chamber.  On 
the  outer  side  of  the  drying  chamber,  the  wall  is  also  built 
of  slats,  but  the  intervals  between  these  become  progressively 
wider  from  above  downward.  Above  the  upper  tray  of  the 
series  the  interval  between  slats  is  only  1-12  inch  in  width, 
above  the  next  it  is  increased  to  2-12,  above  the  next  to  3-12, 
and  each  successive  interval  is  wider  by  1-12  inch,  so  that 
the  slit  opposite  the  outer  edge  of  the  lowest  member  of  the 
series  of  22  trays  is  1 11-12  inches  in  width. 

Warm  air  rises  from  the  furnace  room  into  the  hot  air 


79 


chamber  and  thence  passes  laterally  thru  the  openings  in  the 
walls  into  the  drying  chambers.  Since  there  is  at  the  opposite 
side  of  each  tray  a slit  opening  into  a space  outside  the  outer 
Avail  of  the  drying  chamber,  the  air  moves  laterally  across 
the  face  of  the  inclined  tray  and  escapes  into  this  space  in- 
stead of  rising  thru  the  trays  above.  The  tendency  of  the 
Avarm  air  to  rise  to  the  top  of  the  hot  air  chamber  before 
passing  laterally  over  the  trays  is  corrected  by  making  the 
inlets  into  the  drying  chamber  all  of  the  same  Avidth,  while 
the  outlets  therefrom  are  successively  wider  from  above  down- 
ward, as  already  described.  (See  Fig.  XXI.)  A very  uniform 
distribution  of  the  Avarm  air  is  thus  secured,  the  temperatures 
on  upper  and  lower  trays  of  the  series  differing  only  by  two 
to  five  degrees.  Consequently  this  evaporator  differs  fun- 
damentally from  the  tunnel  type  in  that  all  the  fruit  in  any 
pair  of  chambers  is  kept  at  a uniform  temperature. 


Fig.  XXI.  Detail  of  portion  of  drying  chamber  of  Carson-Snyder 
evaporator,  showing  inclination  of  trays  toward  air  inlets  at  right, 
graduated  air  exits  at  left. 


The  second  story  of  each  unit  has  a pair  of  drying  cham- 
bers identical  in  size,  construction,  and  capacity  Avith  the 
lower  pair,  but  differing  from  them  in  that  they  are  in- 
clined outward  instead  of  inAvard,  and  in  that  the  outer  Avail 
has  uniform  air  inlets  2Y2  inches  Avide  between  trays  while 
1he  inner  Avail  has  the  graduated  slits  for  the  exit  of  air.  The 
Avarm  air.  after  its  passage  thru  the  loAver  drying  cham- 


80 


ber,  passes  into  a space  between  the  drying  chamber  and  the 
solidly  boarded,  vertical  wall  of  the  unit.  This  spkce  is  freely 
open  above  into  the  space  between  the  upper  chamber  and  the 
vertical  wall.  Consequently,  the  warm  air  escaping  from 
the  lower  drying  chambers  rises  in  this  space,  passes  from  it 
into  the  upper  drying  chambers,  where  it  flows  across  the  in- 
clined trays  to  escape  thru  the  graduated  slits  into  a central 
space  from  which  a ventilating  shaft  carries  it  thru  the  roof. 
Since  the  central  hot  air  chamber  and  the  drying  chambers 
of  the  first  story  are  solidly  ceiled  with  matched  lumber, 
while  the  second-story  drying  chambers  and  the  space  at  the 
base  of  the  ventilator  shaft  have  a tight  floor,  air  can  pass 
from  the  heating  chamber  to  the  ventilator  only  by  passing 
over  the  trays.  The  whole  of  this  ingenious  arrangement 
will  be  readily  understood  from  an  examination  of  figures 
XX  and  XXI. 

The  upper  drying  chambers  are  of  course  much  cooler  than 
the  lower  ones,  the  difference  averaging  about  25  to  30  de- 
grees. Consequently  the  time  required  for  drying  apples, 
which  is  6 to  12  hours  in  the  lower  chambers  when  these 
are  kept  at  155-160  degrees,  is  lengthened  to  practically  twice 
the  time  in  the  upper  chambers,  where  the  temperature  ranges 
around  130  degrees.  Mr.  Snyder  says  that  in  so  far  as  he 
is  able  to  determine,  the  upper  chambers  turn  out  a product 
which  is  in  every  respect  as  desirable  as  that  from  the  lower 
ones. 

As  previously  stated,  Mr.  Snyder’s  plant  consists  of  two 
two-story  units,  each  having  four  drying  chambers.  Each 
chamber  has  a capacity  of  22  tiers  of  6 trays  each,  each  tray 
being  30x36  inches  in  outside  dimensions.  Each  chamber  has 
therefore  an  approximate  drying  area  of  990  square  feet,  of 
7920  square  feet  for  the  eight  chambers.  Of  this  area,  one 
half  will  dry  apples  in  12  hours  or  less,  the  remaining  halt 
in  24  hours,  with  a proportionate  difference  for  other  fruits 
and  vegetables.  The  trays  have  a capacity  of  about  20  pounds 
of  apple  slices  each.  When  operated  continuously  with  the 
tunnels  always  full,  the  plant  has  a capacity  somewhat  in 


81 


exc'ess  of  (iOO  l)ushels  or  To  tons  of  apples  daily,  hut  this  is 
not  the  aelual  working  capacity,  as  the  trays  emptied  during 
the  night  are  not  re-filled  until  work  at  the  parers  is  begun 
next  morning.  Loganberries  are  spread  more  thinly  on  the 
trays,  so  that  the  drying  chambers  when  filled  carry  six  tons 
of  fruit,  which  requires  15  and  24  hours  in  the  upper  and  lower 
chambers,  respectively.  About  18  tons  of  prunes  are  required 
for  one  charge,  and  the  time  occupied  in  drying  is  24  hours  in 
the  lower  and  48  hours  in  the  upper  chambers. 

A wide  variety  of  fruits  and  vegetables  have  been  dried  in 
this  plant ; among  the  products  shown  the  writer  may  oe 
mentioned  potatoes,  beets,  carrots,  onions,  cabbage  and  celery. 
The  company  has  built  up  a considerable  business  in  the  dry- 
ing and  blending  of  vegetables  for  soup,  so  that  the  plant  is 
in  operation  for  a large  part  of  the  year. 

The  furnaces  are  built  of  fire  brick,  and  extend  back  for 
the  entire  length  of  the  drying  chambers,  with  a width  of  G 
feet.  Cordwood  is  burned  as  it  comes  from  the  forest,  hence 
comparatively  little  time  is  consumed  in  firing  and  one  man 
can  keep  the  fires  going  and  look  after  the  drying  chandners, 
with  occasional  assistance  when  the  fruit  is  being  inserted 
or  withdrawn. 

Each  furnace  is  enclosed  by  brick  walls  whicn  extend  up 
to  the  floor  of  Ihe  lower  drying  chambers,  enclosing  a space  over 
the  furnace  18  feet  long,  9 in  width,  and  11  in  heighv.  In  this 
space  there  are  two  tiers  of  pipe,  one  above  the  other,  to 
increase  the  radiating  surface. 

IMovement  of  air  thru  the  system  is  secured  by  a series  of 
openings  in  the  side  walls  which  enclose  the  furnaces.  These 
openings  are  f2  or  15  in  number;  each  made  by  leaving 
out  a brick  in  building  the  wall.  They  appear  to  the  writer 
to  be  entirely  too  small  to  permit  adequate  circulation  of  air. 
and  it  is  certain  that  more  rapid  drying  would  be  secured  were 
the  openings  increased  two  to  four-fold  in  area.  Since  the 
air  does  not  pass  thru  a series  of  trays  as  it  does  in  the  tun- 
nel evaporator,  there  is  not  the  same  necessity  for  rapid  cir- 
culation to  prevent  the  saturation  of  the  air  with  moisture, 


82' 


but  its  sluggish  movement  results  in  greater  reduction  of 
temperature  and  consequently  in  slower  drying  in  the  upper 
chambers. 

This  system  of  drying  has  a number  of  features  which  very 
strongly  commend  it.  The  most  objectionable  feature  of  the 
tunnel  evaporator,  namely,  that  the  fruit  in  the  upper  portion 
of  the  tunnel  is  surrounded  by  nearly  saturated  air  at  a tem- 
perature many  degrees  lower  than  at  the  bottom  of  the  tun- 
nel, is  entirely  avoided.  The  objectionable  features  of  the 
Charlotte  and  Carson  evaporators  have  been  eliminated,  and 
their  desirable  characters  very  materially  improved  and  per- 
fected. The  heat  produced  by  the  fuel  is  very  fully  utilized, 
and  the  plant  has  the  advantage  that  the  drying  units  can  be 
made  of  any  desired  length,  provided  the  size  of  the  furnace 
and  the  radiating  surface  of  the  piping  be  correspondingly 
increased.  The  very  satisfactory  quality  of  the  apples,  prunes, 
loganberries,  and  vegetables  produced  is  evidence  that  the 
method  can  be  successfully  used  in  drying  any  fruit  or  vege- 
table material  which  it  might  be  desired  to  evaporate.  For 
these  reasons,  the  Carson-Snyder  type  of  evaporator  ought  to 
receive  careful  consideration  at  the  hands  of  those  who  de- 
sire a general  purpose  evaporator  capable  of  handling  a wide 
variety  of  fruits.  No  one  should  construct  a plant  of  this 
kind,  however,  without  equipping  it  completely  with  labor 
saving  power  machinery,  or  it  is  likely  to  prove  an  unprofit- 
able investment.  It  is  true  that  Mr.  Snyder’s  plant  at  Dayton 
operates  successfully  practically  without  labor-saving  machin- 
ery, but  it  is  unique  in  a number  of  respects.  It  is  located 
in  a region  which  produces  a large  volume  of  each  of  the  fruits 
commonly  evaporated,  and  the  plant  therefore  has  an  assured 
supply  of  an  exceptional  variety  of  materials,  at  moderate 
prices,  for  an  evaporating  season  of  maximum!  length.  Also, 
this  plant  has  been  the  pioneer  in  the  evaporation  of  vegetables 
in  the  Northwest,  and  has  built  up  a substantial  business  in 
the  drying  and  blending  of  vegetables  for  soup  stock.  Con- 
sequently, the  plant  operates  for  a very  large  part  of  each 
year,  and  fixed  charges,  such  as  interest  on  investment,  de- 


83 


preciation,  and  insurance,  are  distributed  over  a long  pro- 
ductive season.  Fuel  is  cheap,  and  labor  of  an  efficient  char- 
acter is  obtainable  at  rates  very  much  lower  than  prevail  in 
most  fruit  districts  in  Washington.  All  these  favoring  con- 
ditions have  combined  with  Mr.  Snyder’s  long  experience,  ex- 
ceptional energy,  enterprise,  and  business  ability  to  make  this 
plant  a financial  success.  The  operator  of  such  an  evaporator 
in  W^ashington  will  scarcely  find  it  feasible  to  undertake  the 
drying  of  vegetables.  The  supply  of  fruits  other  than  apples 
available  from  year  to  year  will  probably  fluctuate  rather 
widel}^,  while  the  cost  of  fuel  and  labor  Avill  almost  certainly 
be  greater  than  at  Dayton.  Economy  .of  operation  may  best 
be  secured  by  the  substitution  of  power-operated  machinery 
for  hand  labor  wherever  possible,  by  the  installation  of  power 
parers,  conveyors,  bleachers  and  slicers.  As  the  arrangement 
of  the  drying  chambers  one  above  the  other  necessitates  trans- 
fer of  fruit  from  floor  to  floor,  an  elevator  and  wheeled  trucks 
for  moving  fruit  in  quantity  will  eliminate  a very  large  ex- 
penditure of  time  and  labor.  There  should  be  spreading  tables 
on  both  drying  floors  in  order  that  fruit  may  be  delivered 
in  quantity  and  placed  on  trays  near  the  chamber  in  Avhich 
it  is  to  be  dried.  It  seems  feasible  to  the  writer  to  eliminate 
the  handling  of  trays  individually  in  the  drying  chambers  by 
substituting  wheeled  trucks  carrying  an  entire  tier  of  trays, 
which  could  be  handled  as  units.*  Since  the  temperatures  at 
bottom  and  top  of  a properly  constructed  and  ventilated  dry- 
ing chamber  are  practically  identical,  the  rate  of  drying  thru- 


*Such  a truck  need  be  merely  a substantial  base  with  small, 
heavy  wheels,  with  a framework  for  carrying  trays  equal  in  height 
to  the  height  of  the  drying  chamber.  The  framework  should  be 
somewhat  narrower  than  the  trays,  which  should  project  at  either 
side,  and  the  cleats  supporting  the  trays  must  be  accurately  spaced 
to  correspond  to  the  spacing  of  air  inlets  and  outlets  in  the  drying 
chamber.  Trays  should  be  inserted  at  the  sides  and  kept  in  place 
by  vertical  strips  at  the  end  of  the  frame.  When  rolled  into  the. 
drying  chamber,  the  projecting  edges  of  the  trays  should  be  just 
above  and  should  overlap  the  runways  on  the  inner  walls  of  the 
tunnel,  thus  insuring  lateral  movement  of  the  air.  If  substantially 
built  and  properly  braced  to  prevent  warping,  such  trucks  would 
soon  pay  for  themselves  in  the  saving  of  time  and  effort  they  would 
accomplish. 


84 


Fig.  XXII.  A popular  and  efficient  type  of  power  parer. 


85 


out  should  be  uniform,  and  a truck  need  not  be  unloaded  until 
it  has  been  removed  and  transferred  to  the  curing  room. 

It  may  seem  to  the  reader  that  undue  space  is  given  to  dis- 
cussion of  labor-saving  devices  and  of  minor  economies  of 
operation  for  eliminating  hand  labor  wherever  possible.  That 
this  is  not  done  without  good  reason  will  perhaps  be  apparent 
when  it  is  recalled  that  the  evaporation  of  fruit  is  a business 
in  which  the  margin  of  profit  is  relatively  narrow  and  that 
profits  depend  upon  the  handling  of  large  volumes  of  raw 
material,  while  the  period  in  which  work  can  go  on  is  made 
a short  one  by  uncontrollable  climatic  conditions.  Anything 
which  saves  time  or  reduces  hand  labor  increases  output  and 
lowers  cost,  hence  widens  the  margin  of  profit.  The  writer 
has  made  an  analytical  study  of  a number  of  unsuccessful 
plants  as  well  as  of  many  very  successful  ones  and  can  say 
that  success  is  not  so  much  dependent  on  the  particular  type 
of  evaporator  employed  as  upon  economy  of  time  and  labor 
thru  the  employment  of  machines.  The  rock  upon  which  at 
least  eight  out  of  ten  evaporating  enterprises  are  wrecked  is 
the  rock  of  too  much  hand  labor.  The  plant  in  which  the 
employees  spend  the  day  in  the  backbreaking  task  of  carry- 
ing boxes  of  fruit  across  the  floor  and  ap  and  down  stairs 
or  in  turning  a handpower  slicer  or  hand  parers,  each  of 
which  needs  t^vo  or  three  trimmers  to  do  what  the  machine 
should  have  done,  will  be  a place  in  which  employees  will  shirk 
and  save  themselves.  It  must  compete  with  the  plant  in  which 
this  heavy  time-consuming  work  is  done  by  power,  and  the 
ultimate  result  will  be  that  the  sheriff  wdll  tack  a sale  notice 
on  the  door.  The  adoption  of  such  labor-saving  devices  as 
are  here  suggested,  and  the  constant  taxing  of  one’s  ingenuity 
to  improve  them  and  to  develop  others,  will  do  more  than  any- 
thing else  to  insure  a permanent  business  with  satisfactory 
profits. 

EVAPORATOR  MACHINERY  AND  EQUIPMENT 

Paring  Machines — Paring  machines  to  be  operated  by  po'wer 
have  been  brought  to  a high  degree  of  perfection,  and  there 
are  several  standard  makes  of  practically  equal  merit  on  the 


86 


Pig.  XXIII,  A power  parer  having  an  automatic  trimming  device, 


87 


market.  Aiiioiig^  sueh  machines  may  be  mentioned  the  Pa- 
cific No.  2,”  the  Goodell,  the  ''Ranger,”  the  "Improved 
Triumph”  and  the  Coons.  All  these  are  heavy,  well  made, 
durable  machines  which  .stand  up  well  under  hard  and  con- 
tinuous usage.  The  illustrations  show  the  general  plan  of 
all  such  machines  in  that  there  are  three  forks;  an  apple  is 
cored  and  discharged  from  one  of  these  while  that  upon  a 
second  fork  is  being  peeled,  the  operator  meanwhile  placing 
the  fruit  upon  the  third.  While  the  claim  is  made  by  some 
makers  that  their  machines  have  trimming  attachments  which 
make  hand  trimming  unnecessary,  it  must  be  said  that  the 
writer  has  seen  no  machine  which  can  do  more  than  reduce  the 
work  of  trimming  by  one-half  when  working  with  good  fruit, 
or  by  perhaps  one-third  when  small,  irregular  apples  are  being 
peeled. 

There  are  a number  of  good  machines  to  be  operated  by 
hand;  nearly  every  maker  of  evaporating  machinery  in  the  list 
given  below  makes  a machine , which  has  been  proven  satis- 
factory. 

Slicers — Several  power  slicers,  among  which  may  be  men- 
tioned the  Boutell,  the  "Rochester,”  the  "Ontario,”  the 
Evans,  and  the  Goodell,  are  widely  used  and  strongly  rec- 
ommended b}^  users.  Such  machines  are  of  two  types,  the 
under-cut,  in  which  the  knives  which  slice  the  apple  pass 
beneath  the  fruit,  and  the  overcut,  in  which  the  exact  oppo- 
site is  the  case.  A defect  common  to  all  overcut  machines 
in  so  far  as  the  writer  is  acquainted  with  them  arises  from  the 
fact  that  the  apple  is  permitted  to  roll  somewhat  before  the 
knives,  with  the  result  that  some  fruits  are  sliced  at  oblique 
angles  with  the  core  hole  or  even  parallel  with  it,  while  a 
larger  percentage  of  slices  are  broken  than  is  the  case  in  the 
undercut  machines.  Most  of  the  companies  making  power 
machines  make  also  smaller  machines  to  be  operated  by  hand 
power.  The  illustration  represents  a good  type  of  undercut 
power  slicer. 

Graders — A good  grader  is  a necessity  in  every  evaporator; 
a larger  ouG)ut  per  day  will  be  handled  by  the  parers  and 


88 


Fig.  XXIV.  An  efficient  under-cut  power  slicer  of  large  capacity. 


trimmers  if  fruit  is  separated  into  sizes  before  paring,  and 
a better  price  will  be  obtained  for  the  product  if  the  larger 
fruits  are  worked  up  together,  since  price  depends  to  some 
extent  upon  size  of  rings.  Since  a grader  is  likely  to  l)e  avail- 
able as  a piece  of  orchard  equipment  already  in  hand,  no  one 
should  attempt  to  handle  apples  of  all  sizes  indis('riminately 
mixed  together. 

Other  equipment — The  construction  of  a good  type  of  power 
bleacher  has  already  been  discussed.  Any  large  wholesale 
hardware  company  can  supply  gearing,  chains  and  other  metal 
parts,  and  the  wooden  portions  may  be  made  by  a good  car- 
penter at  a considerable  saving  over  the  prices  charged  by  the 
supply  companies.  The  same  statement  holds  true  of  convey- 


89 


ors,  tables,  and  all  the  wooden  parts  of  the  paring-room  equip- 
ment; it  may  be  made  on  the  premises,  only  the  shafting,  belt- 
ing and  gearing  need  be  purchased,  and  the  whole  installed 
by  any  good  mechanic. 

The  list  of  companies  given  below  not  only  manufacture 
hand  and  power  parers  and  slicers  but  also  manufacture  or 
handle  belting  for  conveyors,  castings  and  chains  for  bleachers^ 
and  practically  everything  needed  for  the  equipment  of  an 
evaporating  plant  with  power  machinery: 

Boutell  Manufacturing  Co.,  Rochester,  New  York. 

Goodell  Manufacturing  Co.,  Antrim,  N.  H. 

Fruit  Machinery  Co.,  Ingersoll,  Ontario,  Canada. 

Coons-Mabett  Manufacturing  Co.,  Rochester,  N.  Y. 

Evans  & Co.,  i\Iedina,  New  York. 

TEMPERATURES  AT  WHICH  DRYING  SHOULD  BE 

CONDUCTED 

It  must  be  said  in  the  outset  that  no  chemical  studies  of  the 
changes  occurring  in  fruits  dried  at  different  temperatures  have 
ever  been  made,  and  we  have  at  present  no  knowledge  as  to  the 
extent  to  which  loss  of  flavor,  of  solid  constituents,  conversion 
of  starch  into  sugar,  or  other  chemical  changes  occurring  during 
drying  can  be  controlled  by  controlling  temperature.  In  the 
absence  of  such  knowledge,  the  recommendations  made  here 
are  simply  those  in  which  the  great  majority  of  evaporators 
concur.  They  have  been  worked  out  empirically  by  practical 
evaporators  who  fomid  that  best  results  were  obtained  when 
the  temperatures  suggested  were  used,  and  may  need  modifica- 
tion when  exhaustive  studies  of  the  whole  subject  have  been 
made. 

In  the  kiln  evaporator,  at  least  95  per  cent  of  operators  main- 
tain a temperature  of  155-165  degrees  for  the  first  five  or  six 
hours  after  the  kiln  is  filled.  If  the  temperature  is  raised  higher 
than  the  second  figure  named  the  cellular  structure  of  the  fruit 
is  destroyed  by  expansion  of  the  contained  vapor  and  serious 
loss  of  sugar  by  bleeding  occurs;  unless  the  temperature  is  kept 
up  to  this  level  the  surfaces  of  the  fruit  become  slimy  and  the 


90 


subsequent  drying  is  retarded.  After  the  first  five  or  six  hours, 
some  operators  allow  the  temperature  to  go  down  to  130  or 
135  degrees,  open  the  ventilators  widely,  and  continue  the  dry- 
ing by  using  large  volumes  of  air  at  lower  temperature  for  ten 
to  twelve  hours,  after  which  the  temperature  is  brought  up  to 
175-180  degrees  and  kept  there  until  the  drying  is  completed. 
Users  of  this  method  claim  for  it  that  it  is  economical  of  fuel — 
a claim  which  seems  to  be  well  established — and  also  that  it 
makes  a more  springy,  “lively”  product  which  resists  exposure 
to  unfavorable  conditions  much  better  than  fruit  dried  wdth  a 
uniform  temperature.  This  second  claim  does  not  appear  to  be 
fully  substantiated,  and  most  operators  carry  the  fruit  thru  the 
whole  process  at  a temiperatue  of  approximately  160  degrees. 

In  the  tunnel  evaporator,  the  majority  of  operators  maintain 
a temperature  of  160  to  175  degrees  in  the  lower  and  hotter 
end  of  the  tunnel,  while  the  upper  end  will  be  15  to  25  degrees 
cooler.  Since  the  fruit  is  introduced  at  the  upper  end  and 
gradually  moved  toward  the  hotter  end,  it  begins  to  dry  at 
135  to  150  degrees  and  is  finished  at  the  higher  temperature. 
This  is  essentially  what  the  operator  of  the  kiln  accomplishes 
by  the  first  method  described  in  the  last  paragraph. 

In  the  Carson-Snyder  evaporator,  a very  different  set  of  con- 
ditions prevail.  Since  the  temperature  in  the  upper  drying 
chambers  is  usually  25  or  30  degrees  lower  than  that  in  the 
lower  ones,  it  follows  that  the  fruit  placed  in  the  upper 
chamber  is  dried  at  a temperature  considerably  lower 
than  that  used  in  any  other  evaporator.  In  physical  char- 
acters and  appearance  it  is  indistinguishable  from  other  fruit, 
and,  as  already  stated,  we  possess  as  yet  no  information  as  to 
whether  chemical  differences  exist. 

In  drying  prunes  and  berries,  the  temperature  at  the  out- 
set should  not  be  allowed  to  rise  above  125  or  130  degrees 
until  the  fruits  have  lost  a considerable  portion  of  their  water, 
as  otherwise  there  will  be  expansion  and  bursting  with  con- 
sequent dripping.  The  temperature  which  may  be  employed 
in  the  later  stages  of  the  process  will  depend  upon  the  cir- 
culation of  air;  if  ample  air  movement  can  be  obtained  a 


91 


temperature  of  175  to  180  may  be  employed  in  the  last  half 
cf  the  drying  period,  but  if  the  circulation  of  air  is  defective 
the  temperature  must  be  kept  below  this  poinx  or  the  fruit 
will  be  partially  cooked,  or  dried  at  the  surface  while  the  in- 
terior is  still  too  high  in  water  content. 

RELATION  OF  TEMPERATURE  OF  THE  AIR  TO  ITS 
MOISTURE  CARRYING  CAPACITY 

It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  capacity  of  the  air  to 
carry  moisture  is  a function  of  its  temperature,  and  increases 
rapidly  as  the  temperature  is  increased.  How  significant  this 
fact  is  may  at  once  be  seen  from  consideration  of  '.he  fact 
that  1 cubic  foot  of  air  at  the  freezing  point  can  absorb  1-160 
part  of  its  weight  of  water,  and  that  the  water-absorbing 
capacity  is  doubled  with  every  increase  of  27  degrees 
in  temperature.  This  is  shown  in  the  following  table : 


Temperature.  1 cubic  foot  of  air  can  absorb 

32  degrees  1-160  its  weight 

59  degrees  1-80  ” 

86  degrees  1-40  “ “ 

113  degrees  1-20  ” 

140  degrees  1-10  ” ” 

167  degrees  1-5 

194  degrees  2-5  ” 

221  degrees  4-5 


If  we  disregard  the  expansion  of  air  with  increasing  tem- 
perature, which  we  may  do  since  it  amounts  to  only  1-490 
of  the  volume  for  each  degree  rise  of  temperature,  it  will  be 
seen  that  air  raised  from  86  degrees  to  167  degrees  has  had 
its  moisture-carrying  capacity  increased  eightfold,  whereas 
if  the  temperature  be  raised  to  140  degrees  the  moisture-car- 
rying capacity  will  be  increased  only  four-fold.  It  is,  there- 
fore, easily  seen  that  in  drying  any  substance  not  easily  in- 
jured by  heating  choice  may  be  made  between  the  use  of  a 
very  large  volume  of  air  moderately  heated  or  a much  smaller 
volume  of  air  raised  to  a higher  temperature.  The  fact  that 
under  ordinary  conditions  the  rate  of  movement  of  the  air 
over  fruit  cannot  be  brought  under  the  control  of  tlie  opera- 
tor necessitates  the  use  of  higher  temperatures  in  order  to 
bring  the  time  required  for  drying  within  reasonable  limits. 


92 


ARTIFICIAL  MEANS  OF  INCREASING  CIRCULATION 

OF  AIR 

The  operator  of  a tunnel  or  Carson-Snyder  evaporator  who 
finds  that  the  circulation  of  air  thru  the  fruit  is  sluggish  may 
increase  it  to  any  degree  desired  by  installing  suction  fans 
in  the  ventilating  shafts,  or  by  employing  a ventilating  fan 
to  drive  air  into  the  furnace  room,  over  the  furnace,  and  up- 
ward thru  the  fruit.  In  the  case  of  a kiln,  only  the  second 
method  could  be  used,  since  the  air  movement  produced  by 
a suction  fan  would  be  mainly  thru  the  center  of  the  kiln 
and  there  would  be  margins  along  the  walls  in  which  drying 
would  be  very  slow.  Fans  may  be  connected  up  with  the  main 
power  shaft  and  operated  constantly,  or  brought  into  service 
only  on  such  still,  humid  days  as  make  satisfactory  drying  with- 
out their  help  impossible.  Since  their  use  will  necessarily  low^er 
the  temperature  of  the  air,  the  operator  must  bear  in  mind 
what  has  just  been  said  in  regard  to  the  relation  of  tempera- 
ture to  moisture-carrying  capacity  in  determining  the  speed  at 
which  his  fans  shall  run. 

MOISTURE  CONTENT  OF  EVAPORATED  APPLES 

The  only  legislation  regarding  moisture  ‘ content  of  evap- 
orated apples  is  found  in  the  agricultural  laws  of  New  York, 
which  forbids  the  sale  of  other  than  “standard  evaporated 
apples,”  which  are  defined  as  apples  containing  not  more  than 
27  percent  of  water  as  determined  by  drying  for  four  hours 
at  the  temperature  of  boiling  water.  This  law  was  enacted  in 
1904,  after  the  export  business  in  evaporated  apples  had  been 
seriously  damaged  by  the  shipment  to  foreign  markets  of  fruit 
containing  so  much  moisture  that  it  spoiled  in  transit  or  short- 
ly after  receipt  abroad.  It  is  clear  that  the  allowable  per- 
centage is  too  high ; bitter  complaints  have  frequently  been 
made  by  dealers  in  Belgium,  Germany  and  Holland  that  fruit 
which  had  been  imperfectly  dried,  or  fruit  properly  dried  but 
wetted  at  the  time  of  packing,  is  supplied  them  by  New  York 
exporters.  Such  fruit  immediately  begins  to  deteriorate  and 
cannot  be  carried  thru  the  summer  in  ordinary  storage.  Tlie 


93 


Netherlands  Association  of  dealers  in  evaporated  fruits  and 
spices  has  been  especially  emphatic  in  its  protests  against  the 
shipment  of  such  goods  to  its  members,  and  two  years  ago 
published  in  the  trade  journals  of  this  country  a strong  con- 
demnation of  the  quality  of  our  apples,  accompanied  by  a 
proposal  that  shipments  made  in  the  future  should  be  ac- 
companied by  certificates  of  quality  and  weight  made  by  a 
sworn  inspector.  Complaint  has  also  come  from  the  tropics 
and  from  our  own  Southern  states,  for  the  reason  that  it  is 
practically  impossible  to  carry  evaporated  fruits  thru  tlie  sum- 
mer months.  Consequently,  experienced  evaporator  men  are 
agreed  that  the  present  legal  limit  of  27  per  cent  moisture 
is  too  high,  and  at  a hearing  of  the  Joint  Committee  on  Defi- 
nitions and  Standards  of  the  Bureau  of  Chemistry  of  the  De- 
partment of  Agricuture,  held  at  Buffalo,  N.  Y.',  in  February, 
1916,  the  Committee  was  petitioned  to  urge  the  passage  of  a 
Federal  law  making  the  allowable  water  content  of  evaporated 
apples  25  per  cent  and  establishing  a system  of  certified  in- 
spection of  fruit  intended  for  both  foreign  and  domestic  trade. 
It  was  clearly  brought  out  at  the  hearing  that  apples  with  27 
per  cent  moisture  cannot  be  kept  in  temperate  climates  out- 
side of  cold  storage,  that  the  business  has  received  great  injury 
as  a result,  and  that  all  evaporators  favor  a reduction  to  25 
per  cent,  while  a considerable  number  advocate  22  to  24  per 
cent  as  a safer  limit  which  would  permit  goods  to  be  shipped 
into  any  climate. 

Operators  of  evaporators  in  the  Northwest  may  profit  by 
the  experience  of  Eastern  producers  of  dried  fruits.  There 
is  no  question  but  that  the  moisture  content  of  25  per  eent 
which  has  been  suggested  is  barely  within  the  limit  of  safety, 
and  is  designed  to  permit  the  operator  and  dealer  to  dispose 
of  just  as  much  water  as  possible  without  deterioration  of  the 
goods.  Apples  dried  to  a lower  water  content,  as  for  ex- 
ample 22  per  cent,  should  find  ready  favor  in  the  markets  at 
a price  more  than  equalizing  the  difference  in  cost  of  i ro- 
duction,  since  such  fruit  could  be  kept  indefinitely  in  common 
storage  and  could  be  shipped  into  any  climate  without  fear 


94 


of  souring  and  spoilage.  If  the  Northwest  is  to  become  a pro- 
ducer of  commercial  dried  apples,  she  should  take  the  same 
steps  which  have  made  her  fresh  fruit  so  well  and  favorably 
known.  She  should  profit  by  the  example  of  Eastern  States, 
which  have  suffered  the  loss  of  much  domestic  as  well  as 
foreign  trade  thru  dishonest  practices  on  the  part  of  makers 
and  dealers,  and  should  enact  strict  legislation  setting  up 
clearly  defined  standards  of  quality,  reducing  moisture  content 
to  22  per  cent  or  less,  and  establishing  clearly  defined  grades 
and  trade  designations.  Such  action  would  make  the  pro- 
duct of  the  Northwester  evaporator  as  distinctive  and  as  much 
sought  after  as  are  her  boxed  apples,  and  would  yield  good  divi- 
dends in  the  higher  prices  obtained  for  the  product. 

DETERMINING  WHEN  THE  FRUIT  IS  PROPERLY  DRIED 

Fruit  should  be  removed  from  the  kiln  floor  or  drying  trays 
when  it  still  contains  slightly  more  moisture  than  the  finished 
product  is  to  have.  The  ability  to  judge  accurately  as  to  when 
the  fruit  has  reached  the  proper  condition  for  removal  can 
only  be  gained  by  experience,  but  some  general  statements 
may  be  made.  Fruit  which  is  sufficiently  dried  for  removal 
should  be  so  dry  that  it  is  impossible  to  press  water  out  of  the 
freshly  cut  ends  of  the  pieces,  but  should  be  sufficiently  elastic 
not  to  break  when  the  piece  is  rolled  into  a cylinder.  AYhen 
a mass  of  slices  are  pressed  firmly  into  a ball  in  the  hand,  they 
should  separate  at  once  when  released.  The  surface  should 
be  soft  and  should  adhere  slightly  to  the  fingers,  leaving  ^he 
hands  ‘‘sticky”  after  handling  them.  Occasional  slices  will, 
of  course,  have  more  or  less  than  this  amount  of  moisture,  but 
the  general  condition  of  the  fruit  should  be  that  just  described. 

When  the  fruit  has  reached  this  condition,  it  should  be  re- 
moved ta  the  curing  room,  where  it  is  spread  upon  the  floor 
to  a depth  of  a foot  or  more.  Here  the  moisture  content  of 
the  whole  mass  gradually  becomes  equalized,  a process  which 
should  be  accelerated  by  stirring  it  thoroly  once  a day.  A 
slow  loss  of  moisture  content  will  go  on  for  some  days  or  weeks, 
reducing  the  fruit  as  a whole  to  a weight  4-5  per  cent  less  than  it 
had  on  coming  from  the  drier. 


95 


GRADING  AND  PACKING  THE  DRIED  FRUIT 


The  trade  recognizes  four  standard  grades  of  evaporated 
apples,  which  may  be  briefly  defined.  ‘‘Extra  Fancy”  is  a 
name  used  to,  designate  the  highest  quality  fruit,  and  consists 
of  very  white  fruit  in  complete  rings  of  large  size,  with  only 
a very  small  admixture — 5-8  per  cent  at  most — of  broken 
pieces.  It  must  be  free  of  bits  of  skin  and  core,  and  must  be 
perfectly  clean.  “Fancy”  is  also  a clean  white  stock  without 
skin  or  core,  but  may  consist. of  somewhat  smaller  rings  with 
a somewhat  larger  proportion  of  broken  pieces.  “Choice”  is, 
on  most  markets,  a slightly  darker,  somewhat  golden  stock 
made  from  apples  of  high  sugar  content,  reasonably  free  of 
skin  and  cores,  and  with  60  to  70  per  cent  of  the  slices  in  per- 
fect rings.  “Prime”  is  a designation  for  fruit  which,  while 
fairly  white,  has  more  broken  pieces,  peel,  or  seed  cells  than 
are  permissil)le  in  the  “choice”  grade,  or  which  is  reasonably 
free  of  these  but  is  dark  in  color.  A fifth  grade,  called  “mid- 
dling” or  by  various  other  names,  receives  all  fruit  which  has. 
been  so  badly  trimmed  and  cored  than  it  cannot  be  admitted 
to  “prime,”  wdiich  contains  too  large  a proportion  of  broken 
rings  and  chips,  or  which  has  been  badly  bleached  and  is  con- 
sequently very  dark  in  color. 

The  best  evaporators  make  several  grades  of  stock  from  the 
same  lot  of  apples,  b}"  grading  the  fruit  prior  to  peeling  and 
slicing,  and  drying  large  and  small  fruits  separatel}^  When 
a power  slicer  is  used,  the  separation  into  grades  is  carried 
further  by  dividing  the  chute  from  the  slicer  by  partitions, 
so  that  the  large  slices  from  the  center  of  the  apple  pass  into 
one  receptacle  while  the  smaller  slices  from  the  ends  pass  into 
another  and  are  separately  dried.  W^hen  packing  begins,  the 
fruit  is  again  sorted  over,  the  largest  perfect  slices  being  put 
together  as  extra  fancy,  those  also  perfect  but  made  from 
smaller  fruits  going  into  fancy,  while  the  smallest  slices  are 
put  together  into  prime,  and  only  the  broken  bits  of  ring, 
slices  with  adhering  seed  cells  or  skin,  and  pieces  Avith  other 
imperfections,  along  with  badly  bleached  fruit,  remain  to  fall 
into  the  lowest  grade.  Such  care  is  well  repaid  by  the  higher- 


96 


prices  which  will  be  received  for  the  perfect  fruit  of  the  upper 
grades. 

In  packing  the  fruit,  wooden  boxes  containing  25  to  50 
pounds  are  used  for  all  grades  above  prime,  while  prime  and 
middling  are  more  frequently  sacked  in  bags  containing  50  or 
100  pounds.  A fifty-pound  box  is  usually  22x11x10%  inches, 
while  the  twenty-five-pound  box  is  18x9x9  inches,  inside  dimen- 
sions. These  boxes  are  made  with  a loose  side  which  becomes 
the  bottom,  not  the  top,  of  the  box  when  it  is  filled.  Packing 
is  begun  by  '‘facing”  the  future  top  of  the  box  with  a layer 
of  perfect  slices  of  good  size,  which  are  laid  in  overlapping 
fashion,  like  the  shingles  on  a roof,  over  the  entire  surface, 
after  lining  the  box  with  paraffined  paper  which  usually  has 
a fancy  lace  edge.  After  the  "facers”  are  in  place,  a second 
box  of  the  same  size  but  with  both  bottom  and  top  removed 
is  placed  over  the  first  one,  and  fruit  is  packed  in  by  hand  until 
the  desired  weight  is  reached,  when  the  box  is  transferred  to 
the  platform  of  a hand  press,  a board  slightly  smaller  than  the 
inside  dimensions  of  the  box  is  placed  on  top,  and  pressure  is 
applied  until  the  fruit  is  forced  down  sufficiently  to  permit 
the  bottom  to  be  nailed  on.  The  package  should  be  finished  by 
stenciling  thereon  the  maker’s  name  and  address,  with  the 
weight,  grade,  and  the  variety  of  fruit  from  which  the  product 
was  made.  A guarantee  covering  these  facts  may  advantage- 
ously be  added. 

VARIETIES  BEST  FOR  EVAPORATION 

Since  the  prices  of  evaporated  apples  in  the  markets  depend 
upon  the  color  of  the  product  as  well  as  upon  the  care  em- 
ployed in  its  manufacture,  those  varieties  which  make  the 
whitest  product  are  most  desired  by  evaporators.  In  the 
East,  Baldwin  holds  first  place  in  this  respect.  Spitzenburg 
and  Ben  Davis  make  as  white  stock  as  Baldwin,  and  will  un- 
doubtedly take  rank  among  Northwestern  evaporators  corre- 
sponding to  the  Baldwin  in  the  East.  Winesap,  Delicious,  Jona- 
than, Black  Twig,  Rhode  Island  Greening,  Rome  Beauty  and 


97 


Stayiiian  Winesap  will  make  a slightly  less  white,  faintly  goldeu 
stock,  and  will  rank  together  in  second  place,  while  Roxbury 
Russet,  ^lissouri  and  Yellow  Newtown,  Gano,  Wagener,  and 
Grimes  Golden  will  be  ranked  as  the  '‘dark  stock  group”  by 
reason  of  the  fact  that  the  fruit  made  from  them  will  be  a 
distinctly  golden  color  which  will  command  in  the  markets  a 
price  slightly  below  that  of  the  whiter  stocks. 

YIELD  OF  DRY  FRUIT  FROM  DIFFERENT  VARIETIES 

It  may  be  said  at  the  outset  that  color  and  weight  of  dry 
product  are  both  directly  dependent  upon  the  sugar  content 
of  the  variety  used;  that  such  varieties  as  are  characteristic- 
ally low  in  sugar  content  will  give  the  desired  white  stock,  but 
will  give  small  yields  of  dry  product,  while  varieties  high  in 
sugar  content  will  give  a larger  yield  of  a product  of  darker 
color. Of  the  apples  named  in  the  "white  stock  group” 
above,  it  may  be  said  that  an  average  yield  of  dry  fruit 
from  Baldwin,  Spitzenburg,  or  Ben  Davis  will  be  18  to  131/^ 
pounds  per  hundred  pounds  of  fresh  fruit;  for  the  second 
group — AVinesap,  Jonathan,  Black  Twig  and  Greenings,  the 
yield  will  be,  on  the  average,  to  141/2  pounds  per  hun- 

dred, while  Russets,  Grimes  Golden,  and  the  others  named 
with  them  as  the  "dark  stock  group”  will  give  a yield  of 
I41/2  to  16  pounds  of  dry  fruit  per  hundred.  In  all  cases, 
these  figures  apply  to  mature  apples  of  C grade  or  good  culls, 
dried  to  a water  content  of  25  per  cent.  AA'indfalls  and  imma- 
ture fruits  will  make  a slightly  lighter  product,  as  they  must 
have  the  water  content  reduced  to  a lower  percentage  in  orer  to 
prevent  spoiling. 

In  this  connection  it  may  be  of  interest  to  state  the  results 
obtained  by  Mr.  D.  A,  Snyder  of  the  Dayton  Evaporating  and 
Packing  Co.,  who  dried  during  the  past  season  a number  of 
lots  of  apples  sent  him  from  Spokane,  from  points  in  Idaho,  and 


* Since  summer  varieties  are,  as  a class,  very  low  in  total  solids 
and  in  sugar,  the  yield  of  dry  fruit  is  so  small  that  it  is  impossible 
to  evaporate  them  with  profit.  For  this  reason  no  summer  varieties 
are  mentioned  in  this  discussion. 


98 


from  Portland,  Oregon,  for  the  purpose  of  making  compara- 
tive  tests  of  yields.  The  results  follow : 


Variety 

Grade 

Origin 

Dry  Fruit 

per  100  lbs. 

Arkansas  Black . . . 

. . . C 

12.84 

Arkansas  Black . . . 

. . . Culls 

12.75 

Ben  Davis 

. . . C 

13.12 

Ben  Davis 

. . . Culls 

12.54 

Rome  Beauty 

. . .C 

. . . . Idaho  .... 

12.91 

Rome  Beauty 

12.19 

Winesap 

. . . C 

12.96 

Winesap 

. . . Culls 

12.70 

Wagener 

. . .C 

,13.36 

Wagener 

. . . . Spokane  . . 

14.68 

Ben  Davis 

Culls 

13.09 

Ben  Davis 

B 

14.68 

These  results  would  indicate  that  the  yield  of  dry  fruit 
from  a given  variety  grown  in  the  Northwest  is  practically 
what  the  same  variety  yields  in  other  apple-producing  regions 
of  the  United  States.  Extensive  comparative  studies  of  the 
chemical  composition  of  the  leading  varieties  of  apples  when 
grown  under  the  various  conditions  of  rainfall  and  irrigation 
occuring  in  the  Northwest  are  badly  needed.  Such  studies 
have  thus  far  been  made  only  for  Idaho  apples.  Jones  and 
Colver  of  the  Idaho  Experiment  Station  have  made  extensive 
series  of  analyses^  of  the  chief  varieties  of  apples  and  other 
fruits  grown  in  that  state,  with  and  without  irrigation,  and 
the  results  storngly  indicate  that  there  is  no  substantial  ground 
for  the  widely  current  statement  that  Norh western  apples 
are  higher  in  water  content,  lower  in  sugar  and  total  car- 
bohydrate content,  and  lower  in  nutritive  value  than  apples 
grown  in  other  sections  of  the  United  States.  While  the  var- 
iations in  composition  of  any  given  variety  shown  by  the 
analyses  of  Jones  and  Clover  are  very  considerable,  equally 
great  variations  are  found  when  analyses  of  varieties  grown 
in  other  regions  are  compared,  and  the  averages  of  any  twa 
sets  of  analyses  made  in  different  portions  of  the  United 
States  fall  very  nearly  together  when  compared.  Conse- 

1.  Jones,  J.  S.,  and  Colver,  C.  W.,  The  Composition  of  Irrigated 
and  Non-irrigated  Fruits.  Bull.  75  Idaho  Agric.  Exp.  Sta.  1912', 
pp.  54. 


99 


quently,  no  one  need  give  credence  to  statements  to  the  effect 
that  Northwestern  apples  will  yield  a materially  smaller 
quantity  of  evaporated  product  than  is  obtained  from  the 
same  varieties  in  the  East. 

THE  UTILIZATION  OF  PEELS  AND  CORES 

Every  bushel  of  good,  sound  C grade  apples  will  yield  about 
14  pounds  of  peels,  trimmings,  and  cores,  called  in  the  trade 
“waste,”  while  culls  will  yield  about  15  or  16  pounds.  Con- 
sequently, the  evaporator  handling  50,000  bushels  of  apples 
in  a season  will  have  produced  700,000  to  750,000  pounds  of 
waste,  which  has  a sugar  content  approximately  equalling 
that  of  the  fruit  from  which  it  was  made  and  averaging  at 
least  8V2  to  9 per  cent.  In  the  Eastern  states,  waste  is  oc- 
casionally converted  into  vinegar  by  the  producer,  but  is 
much  more  often  dried  and  sold,  most  of  it  for  export  and 
conversion  into  vinegar  abroad,  while  the  remainder  is  pur- 
chased by  vinegar  and  jelly  vactories,  which  exhaust  the 
dried  material  with  water.  Since  state  laws  forbid  the  addi- 
tion of  water  in  the  process  of  manufacture  of  vinegar,  this 
could  not  be  done  in  Washington,  but  waste  might  profitably 
be  pressed  fresh  and  converted  into  vinegar  or  sold  to  vine- 
gar factories.  Dried  waste  sells  in  the  Eastern  markets  at 
prices  ranging  from  IV2  cents  to  cents  per  pound,  and 
each  bushel  of  fresh  fruit  will  yield  about  2%  to  3 pounds 
of  dry  waste.  When  locally  produced  evaporated  fruits  come 
on  the  market  in  commercial  quantities,  there  will  no  donbt 
be  a market  for  peels  and  cores,  but  until  that  time,  the  in- 
dividual evaporator  should  endeavor  to  dispose  of  his  pro- 
duct to  a cannery  or  vinegar  factory,  or  should  work  it  up  into 
vinegar  on  his  own  account,  as  it  may  readily  be  seen  that 
the  operator  who  makes  no  use  of  this  material  must  neces- 
sarily operate  under  a heavy  handicap. 

COST  OF  CONSTRUCTING  BUILDINGS 

To  present  a complete  itemized  bill  of  materials  and  a 
destailed  estimate  of  cost  for  each  of  the  buildings  described 
in  the  preceding  pages  would  require  more  space  than  is  avail- 


able.  Such  estimates  have  been  prepared  in  detail,  and  will 
be  furnished  upon  application  to  the  Director  of  the  Experiment 
Station,  Pullman.  Such  requests  should  be  accompanied  by 
information  as  to  the  approximate  capacity  of  the  plant  de- 
sired and  as  to  the  sorts  and  amounts  of  fruit  other  than  apples 
to  be  handled  by  the  plant,  in  order  that  the  plans  and  esti- 
mates sent  may  be  fitted  to  the  needs  of  the  particular  case. 

The  condensed  estimates  below  are  designed  to  furnish  the 
prospective  builder  a working  basis  for  his  calculations  of  cost 
of  his  building.  They  supply  accurate  information  as  to  the 
amounts  and  kinds  of  material  necessary  for  constructing  the 
buildings  described,  and  the  individual  builder  must  substitute 
current  prices  in  his  own  locality  for  those  given,  which  are 
quotations  by  dealers  and  contractors  in  Pullman  and  will  of 
course  not  hold  good  elsewhere. 

Materials  and  Cost  of  Construction  for  Two  Kiln  Plant — 

If  this  plant  be  built  of  concrete,  with  concrete  walls  8 inches 
thick  to  the  second  story  level  and  6 inches  thick  above,  with 
concrete  foundations  11/2  feet  wide  and  1 foot  thick  below  the 
ground  level,  it  will  require  80  cubic  yards  of  concrete,  which 
contractors  in  Pullman  will  put  into  the  walls,  furnishing 
everything  necessary  except  reinforcing  steel,  for  $11.00  per* 
cubic  yard,  or  $880.00 ; 1200  pounds  iron  rods  at  5 cents  for 
reinforcing  concrete,  will  cost  $60.00,  making  a total  of  $940.00 
for  the  concrete  building.  If  brick  walls  8 inches  thick  rest- 
ing on  a concrete  foundation  feet  wide  and  1 foot  thick  be 
used,  they  will  require  53,500  brick,  which  contractors  in  Pull- 
man will  furnish  and  build  into  wall  at  $20.00  per  thousand,  or 
$1070,  with  an  additional  charge  of  $117.30  for  288  cubic  feet 
of  coucrete  foundation,  or  a total  of  $1187.30.- 

Other  items  of  cost,  which  will  l)e  identical  for  the  two  build- 
ings, are  as  follows : 

Roofing,  3-ply  asphalt,  1672  sq.  ft.  at  $2.50  per  square... $ 42.50 

or  corrugated  iron  roofing,  1 748  sq.  ft.  at  4.00  per  square  72.00 
Sills  and  joists,  618  feet  of  6x6  ins.  at  $20.00  per  thousand  12.40 
Rafters,  780  feet  of  2x6  ins.  at  $20.00  per  thousand 15.60 

*This  cost  is  excessive;  in  most  localities  prices  average  $6.00 
to  $8.00  per  cubic  yard. 


101 


Framing  for  ventilators  and  bins,  450  feet  of  2x4  ins.  at 

$20.00  per  thousand  9.00» 

Flooring,  1100  feet  at  28.00  per  thousand 30.80 

Ship  lap,  for  sheathing  roof,  1800  feet;  for  bins,  1100  feet; 
for  ventilator,  9 00  feet;  for  stairway,  4 00  feet;  total 

4200  feet  at  $16.00  per  thousand 67.20 

Chimney,  concrete  base  and  brick  flue,  complete.  30.00 

Concrete  jackets  and  metal  lath  and  cement  hoppers  around 

furnaces,  two,  complete  . 60.00 

Furnaces,  brick,  with  firebrick  lining,  8x4x3 feet,  com- 
plete   54.00 

Piping,  360  feet  9 inch  pipe  at  8 cents 28.80 

Windows,  1 7 at  $1.60  each 27.20 

Doors,  steel,  8 at  $3.00  each 24.00 

Framing  and  casing  for  doors  and  windows 37.50 

I beams  for  supporting  kiln  floors,  80  feet,  1800  pounds  at 

3 % cents  67.50 

Maple  kiln  slats,  720  square  feet  at  $5.75  per  hundred 41.40 

Nails,  hinges  and  minor  hardware 25.00 

Carpenters’  labor,  master  carpenter  at  $5.50;  ordinary  car- 
penter at  $4.50  per  day,  18  days  each 180.00 

Metal  parts  for  bleacher,  belts  for  conveyors,  shafting,  and 

belting  from  engine  to  main  shaft ‘.  . . 150.00 

Lumber  for  paring  table,  conveyors,  bleacher  and  chutes 

from  storage  bins,  1400  feet  at  $28.00  per  thousand...  . 39.20’ 


These  items  total  $882.20  for  building  with  asphalt  roof  and 
$911.70  for  building  with  corrugated  iron  roof.  Adding  these 
items  to  the  cost  of  concrete  or  brick  walls,  we  have  $1822.20 
for  concrete  building  with  asphalt  roof,  $1851.70  for  same 
building  ivith  metal  roof,  $2069.50  for  brick  building  with  as- 
phalt roof  and  $2098.00  for  same  with  metal  roof. 

Materials  and  Cost  of  Construction  for  Four  Kiln  Plant — 

For  a concrete  building,  with  foundations  IVL’xl  feet  under  all 
walls,  walls  8 inches  thick  to  second  floor,  6 inches  above,  thei’O 
will  be  required  155%  cubic  yards  of  concrete -which  at  $11.00 
per  cubic  yard  will  cost  $1713.25,  with  an  additional  cost  of 
$125.00  for  2500  pounds  of  iron  rod  for  reinforcement.  If  built 
of  brick,  103,500  brick  costing  $20.00  per  thousand  laid  in 
wall  will  cost  $2070.00  with  an  additional  cost  for  concrete 
foundation  iy2xl  feet  under  all  walls,  564  cubic  feet  at  $11.00' 
per  cubic  yard,  of  $231.00,  or  a total  of  $2301.00. 

Other  items  identical  for  the  tAvo  l^ialdings  are  as  follows: — 

Roofing,  3-ply  asphalt,  4264  sq.  ft.  at  $2.50  per  square.  . . .$107.50 
or  corrugated  iron,  4582  sq.  ft.  at  $4.00  per  square.  . . . 184.00 
Sills  and  joists,  2100  feet  of  6x6  ins.  at  $20.00  per  thousand  42.00 
Rafters,  2000  feet  of  2x6  ins.  at  $20.00  per  thousand 40.00 


102 


framing-  for  ventilators  and  bins,  1800  feet  of  2x4  ins.  at 

$20.00  per  thousand  37.00 

Flooring,  3600  feet  at  $28.00  per  thousand 100.80 

Ship  lap,  for  sheathing  roof,  4600  feet;  for  bins,  1800  feet; 
for  ventilator,  1800  feet;  total  8200  feet  at  $16,00  per 

thousand  131.20 

Chimneys,  concrete  base  and  brick  flues,  complete 60.0  0 

•Concrete  jackets  with  metal  lath  and  plaster  hoppers  around 

furnaces,  four,  complete  120.00 

Furnaces,  brick  with  firebrick  lining,  four,  complete 108.00 

Piping,  7 20  feet  9 inch  pipe  at  8 cents 57.60 

Windows,  32  at  $1.60  each * 51.20 

Doors,  steel,  17  at  $3.00  each 51.00 

Framing  and  casing  for  doors  and  windows 77.50 

I beams  for  supporting  kiln  floors,  160  feet,  3600  pounds  at 

2%  cents 135.00 

Maple  kiln  slats,  20  00  square  feet  at  $5.75  per  hundred  feet  115.00 

Minor  hardware,  nails,  hinges,  etc 60.00 

Carpenters’  labor,  master  carpenter  at  $5.50;  two  ordinary 

carpenters  at  $4.50  each,  24  days  each 348.00 

Metal  parts  for  bleacher,  belts  for  conveyors,  shafting,  belt 

from  engine  to  main  shaft,  belting  to  parers,  etc 200.00 

Lumber  for  paring  table,  conveyors,  bleacher,  washing  tank, 
and  chutes  from  storage  bins  to  paring  tables,  3000  feet 
at  $28.00  84.00 


These  items  total  $1925.80  for  building  with  asphalt  roof, 
$2004.30  for  that  with  metal  roof.  Yfhen  added  to  the  cost 
of  concrete  walls,  the  total  is  $3764.05  for  concrete  building 
with  asphalt  roof,  $3842.55  for  coiKU'cte  building  with  metal 
roof,  $4226.70  for  brick  with  asphalt  roof  and  $4305.30  for 
brick  with  metal  roof. 

These  estimates  have  been  purposely  made  rather  liberal, 
and  the  actual  costs  of  construction  Avill  rarely  exceed  them. 

Costs  of  Tunnel  Evaporator — In  case  the  building  for  a two- 
kiln  plant  is  to  be  used  for  housing  a tunnel  evaporator,  two 
groups  of  three  tunnels  each,  occupying  an  area  20x22  feet, 
may  advantageously  be  placed  ip  a portion  of  the  space  de- 
voted to  kilns  in  the  plans,  the  remaining  space  being  added 
to  the  work  and  storage  room.  From  the  estimated  costs  of 
$1822.20  for  concrete  or  $2069.50  for  brick  building  with  as- 
phalt roof,  the  following  deductions  should  be  made: — 

Inside  walls  of  kilns,  29  cubic  yds.  concrete  at  $11.00,  $319.00, 
•or  for  brick  building,  15000  brick  at  $20.00  with  87  cubic  feet 
of  concrete  foundation  at  $11.00  per  cubic  yard,  totaling 
$336.30 ; I beams,  $67.50,  kiln  slats,  $41.40,  labor  of  laying  kiln 


103 


floors,  $20.00,  a total  of  $447.90  for  tlie  concrete  or  $464.20  for 
the  brick  i)uil(.lin«-.  Deducting-  these  sums,  Ave  have  remain- 
ing $1274.40  for  the  concrete  and  $1605.80  for  the  brick  build- 
ins.  To  these  sums  must  be  added  the  following: — 


Sills  and  joists,  1600  feet  6x6  in,  at  $20.00  $ 32.00 

Flooring,  1960  feet  at  $28.00  56.00 

Lumber  for  tunnels,  2000  feet  No.  2 flooring  at  $22.00 44.00 

Framing  for  tunnels,  500  feet  2x4  ins.  at  $20.00  10.00 

Runways  for  tunnels,  500  feet  lx%  in.  at  $20.00 10.00 

Metal  sheets  for  floors  of  tunnels,  400  square  feet  at  $4.00 

per  square  16.00 

Labor  for  constructing  tunnels  96.00 

Trays,  800  at  65  cents 520.00 

12  doors,  double  thickness,  for  tunnels 4 8.00 

Nails  and  minor  hardware 20.00 


Total $852.00 


Adding  this  total  to  $1874.80  and  to  $1605.80  gwes  totals  of 
$2226.80  for  the  concrete  building  and  $2257.80  for  the  brick 
structure. 

In  case  the  bidding  suggested  for  a four-kiln  plant  is  to  be 
used  for  a tunnel  evaporator,  it  may  conveniently  have  four  or 
six  sets  of  three  tunnels  each.  If  six  groups  of  three  tunnels 
each  are  installed,  the  alterations  in  estimates  of  cost  will  be 
as  follows : — 

Deduct  62  yards  of  concrete  work  at  $11.00  per  ^-ard,  or 
$682.00,  from  the  cost  of  concrete  building,  and  $966.00  for 
43950  brick  at  $20.00  per  thousand  with  210  cubic  feet  of  con- 
crete work  in  foundation  at  $11.00  per  cubic  yard,  from  cost 
of  brick  building.  From  each  deduct  cost  of  I beams,  $185.00. 
of  kiln  floor  slats,  $115.00,  and  labor  of  laying  floor,  $40.00. 
These  total  a deduction  of  $972  from  the  cost  of  the  concrete 
building  eciuipped  with  kilns,  leaving  $2792.05,  and  of  $1256 
from  that  of  the  brick  building,  leaving  $2970.70  To  these  sums 
must  be  added  the  following: — 


4400  feet  flooring  at  $28.00  per  thousand $123.20 

2900  feet  sills  and  ioists.  6x6  ins.,  at  $20.00  58.00 

Lumber  for  tunnels,  6400  feet  at  $22.00 1 40.80 

Framing  for  tunnels,  1500  feet  2x4  ins.  at  $20.00  30.00 

Runways  for  tunnels,  1500  feet  lx%  ins.  at  $20.00.  . 30.00 

Metal  sheeting  for  flooring  tunnels,  1200  sq.  ft,  at  $4.00.  . . 48.00 

Additional  labor  on  building  by  reason  of  changes.  ........  75.00 

Labor  of  constructing  tunnels 288.00 


104 


36  double  thickness  doors  for  tunnels,  with  hinges.  . — v-. 14£p0 

2 furnaces,  complete • • •,  • 54;b0 

Jacket  and  hopper  construction  for  two  furnaces,  66!o'0 

Pipe,  200  feet  at  8 cents . • ; IS.'dO 

Nails,  hinges  and  minor  hardware. 50,0,P 

Trays,  2400  at  65  cents !.  .1560*. 00 


Total . $2677.00 


Adding  this  amount  to  the  costs  of  buildings  above  given, 
the  total  cost  for  concrete  building  with  asphalt  roof  becomes 
$5469.05,  that  for  the  brick  building,  $5647.70.  In  case  a 
smaller  number  of  tunnels  are  to  be  installed  in  the  building, 
an  approximation  of  the  cost  can  be  reached  from  the  data 
just  given. 

Costs  of  Construction  of  the  Carson-Snyder  Evaporator — 

By  reason  of  the  arrangement  of  the  Carson-Snyder  evaporator, 
a building  of  three  stories  and  of  an  essentially  different  type 
from  those  described  in  this  bulletin  will  be  necessary,  and  the 
details  of  construction  will  vary  considerabl}"  with  the  ca- 
pacity which  the  plant  is  to  have.  For  these  reasons,  no  at- 
tempt to  give  estimates  of  costs  or  of  amomits  of  materials 
necessary  for  a building  of  a definite  size  is  made ; detailed 
plans  and  estimates  suited  to  the  requirements  of  each  par- 
ticular case  will  be  supplied  to  those  making  application  to  the 
Director  for  them.  In  general  it  may  be  said  that  the  cost  of 
a Carson-Snyder  evaporator  of  a given  capacity  will  be  almost 
identical  with  that  of  a tunnel  evaporator  of  like  capacity 
built  of  the  same  materials. 

COST  OF  PRODUCTION  OF  EVAPORATED  APPLES 

The  estimates  of  cost  of  production  of  evaporated  apples 
here  given  are  based  upon  data  obtained  from  a number  of 
evaporators  in  Washington  and  Oregon,  together  with  a much' 
larger  number  of  detailed  estimates  obtained  in  Western  New 
York  and  are  believed  to  fairly  represent  average  conditions 
in  the  state  of  Washington.  An  attempt  has  been  made  to 
analyze  the  various  elements  entering  into  the  cost  of  pro-^ 
duction  in  sufficient  detail  to  enable  the  substitution  of  local 
fuel  or  local  labor  costs  for  the  data  here  given. 


105 


Labor — The  cost  of  paring  and  trimming  may  be  placed  at 
5 cents  per  bushel.  The  majority  of  Eastern  evaporators  pay 
this  amount  as  a flat  rate  to  a “team”  of  two  women  or 
girls  who  work  together,  one  paring  while  the  other  trims. 
Payment  by  the  bushel  is  to  be  preferred  to  payment  by  the 
day,  for  obvious  reasons.  With  a properly  constructed  par- 
ing table  conveniently  arranged  and  with  power  parers  kept  in 
good  repair,  such  a team  will  handle  65  to  80  bushels  of 
good  C grade  fruit  in  an  eight-hour  day,  with  50-60  bushels  as 
the  output  if  small  or  wormy  culls  are  being  handled.  If 
hand  power  parers  are  used,  the  output  will  be  at  lease  10 
per  cent  less,  and  if  inexperienced  trimmers  are  employed, 
three  may  be  necessary  for  each  pair  of  machines.  Women 
are  almost  universally  employed  as  trimmers,  since  their 
manual  dexterity  and  quickness  in  the  ^rork  are  much  greater 
than  is  the  case  with  men.  When  power  peelers  are  employed, 
girls  or  women  are  usvjal)}^  employed  to  operate  them;  it  is 
sometimes  difficult  to  secTire  women  who  are  willing  to  run 
hand  parers  because  of  tl  e muscular  effort  necessary. 

If  apples  must  be  carried  in  from  outside  bins,  washed,  and 
delivered  to  the  parers  by  hand,  one  man  will  be  able  to 
handle  about  300  bushels  daily.  If  these  apples  are  carried 
by  a power  conveyor  from  the  washing  tank  to  a storage  bin 
from  which  they  are  delivered  by  gravity  chutes  to  the 
parers’  boxes,  as  provided  for  in  the  plans  given  in  this  paper, 
one  man  will  wash  400-500  bushels  of  apples  in  two  or  three 
hours,  and  is  then  free  for  other  work.  Such  a man  may  be 
a common  laborer  receiving  $1.75  to  $2  per  day,  or  he  may  be  a 
somewhat  higher  priced  man  who  will  be  able  to  look  after 
the  gasoline  engine,  make  minor  repairs  to  machines,  and  keep 
everything  in  the  paring  room  in  working  order. 

In  a kiln  plant,  two  kiln  men  will  be  needed,  one  for  daj” 
and  one  for  night  duty.  These  should  be  the  most  intelli- 
gent and  capable  employees  about  the  place  and  should  have 
the  direction  of  the  furnace  men.  They  usually  receive  $2.50 
per  day.  One  kiln  man  will  be  able  to.  care  for  four  or  even 
for  six  kilns  thru  the  first  half  or  two-thirds  of  the  drying 


106 


period,  but  will  need  help  for  the  remainder  of  the  time,  dur- 
ing which  the  fruit  must  be  frequently  stirred.  In  a tunnel 
of  Carson-Snyder  plant,  one  man  will  be  able  to  take  care  of 
six  to  ten  tunnels  if  trays  of  fruit,  ready  spread,  are  con- 
veniently stacked  where  he  can  insert  them  as  dry  fruit  is 
removed,  and  if  the  dry  fruit  can  be  stacked  as  it  is  with- 
drawn and  subsequently  transferred  to  the  drying  room. 

One  furnace  man  for  night  and  one  for  day  duty  will  be 
necessary  and  one  man  can  very  readily  take  care  of  four 
kilns  or  of  a corresponding  number  of  furnaces  in  plants  of 
other  types.  These  usually  receive  $1.75  to  $2.00  per  day. 

If  a power  bleacher  and  power  slicer  are  used,  the  man  in 
charge  of  the  kiln  floor  will  be  able  to  oversee  their  opera- 
tion with  the  help  of  the  laborer  from  the  paring  room  while 
kilns  are  being  filled.  If  a hand  bleacher  and  hand  slicer  are 
used,  the  time  of  one  man  and  a strong  boy  will  be  taken  up 
in  bleaching,  slicing,  and  spreading  the  fruit  on  the  four  kilns. 

In  case  a tunnel  or  Carson-Snyder  plant  is  being  operated, 
the  spreading  of  the  fruit  on  the  trays  will  require  one  woman 
or  girl  for  each  75-100  bushels  of  fruit  handled,  and  one  man 
will  be  needed  to  keep  the  spreading  table  supplied  with  trays 
and  remove  those  that  are  filled.  Spreaders  are  paid  $1.25 
per  day,  or  may  be  paid  a flat  rate  per  tray.  Thus,  for  a 
plant  handling  400  bushels  of  apples  daily,  the  total  labor 
bill  would  be  approximately  as  follows : — 


5 parers  and  5 trimmers,  at  5c  per  bushel $20.00 

2 furnace  men,  1 for  day,  1 for  night 4.00 

2 kiln  men,  1 for  day,  1 for  night  @ $2.50 5.00 

1 general  purpose  laborer  2.00 

Total $31.00 


In  case  the  plant  were  without  power  machinery,  there 
would  be  needed  an  additional  peeler  and  a trimmer  at  $1.50 
€ach  per  day,  and  two  men  or  a man  and  a boy  at  bleacher 
and  slicer.  In  a tunnel  or  Carson  Snyder  plant,  there  would 
also  be  necessary  five  girls  at  tlie  spreading  table,  at  a min- 
imum rale  of  $1.00  per  day,  and  a laborer  to  wait  on  them 
nt  $2.00,  making  a total  of  $7.00.  These,  estimates  therefore 


107 


give  for  a plant  with  a capacity  of  400  bushels  a labor  bill 
of  $31.00  per  day  in  a kiln  with  power  machinery,  $38.00  for 
the  same  plant  without  power  machinery,  and  an  additional 
labor  bill  of  $7.00  per  day  if  the  fruit  is  dried  on  trays.  Re- 
ducing this  to  a cost  per  bushel  basis,  we  have  7.75  cents  per 
bushel  for  kiln  with  power,  9.5  cents  for  kiln  without  power^ 
and  9.25  cents  for  power-equipped  tunnel  dryer.  In  the  extreme 
case  that  the  tunnel  dryer  has  no  power  equipment,  the  cost 
would  mount  up  to  11.25  cents  per  bushel,  which  is  practically 
prohibitive. 

Fuel — Furnaces  vary  so  tremendously  intheir  efficiency  that 
any  statement  must  be  regarded  as  a mere  generalization. 
With  the  systems  of  piping  and  the  jacket-and-hopper  type 
of  construction  described  in  this  paper,  something  like  60  to 
70  per  cent  of  the  theoretical  heating  efficiency  of  the  fuel 
burned  ought  to  be  obtained  if  the  furnace  is  properly  con- 
structed. In  a kiln,  one  and  one-half  to  one  and  two-thirds 
cords  of  wood  will  be  required  to  produce  a ton  of  dried  apples ; 
if  the  hopper  construction  is  not  used,  two  cords  may  be  re- 
garded as  a fair  estimate.  In  the  tunnel  or  Carson-Snyder 
driers,  one  and  one-half  cords  is  a rather  liberal  estimate  and 
when  the  plant  is  continuously  operated  at  capacity  it  will 
come  somewhat  under  this.  A ton  of  dry  fruit  may  be  re- 
garded as  equivalent  to  seven  tons,  or  280  bushels,  of  fresh 
fruit,  and  if  wood  costs  $4.00  a cord,  a charge  of  $6.00  for 
fuel  must  be  made  against  this  amount  of  fruit,  or  2.13  cents 
per  bushel. 

Sulphur,  Repairs,  and  Minor  Items  of  Cost — Repairs  to  ma- 
chines and  to  the  engine,  oil  for  kiln  floors,  sulphur  for  bleach- 
ing, replacement  of  wornout  belting,  and  similar  minor  items, 
are  grouped  together  by  many  experienced  operators  as  cost- 
ing them  about  1/2  cent  per  bushel  of  apples  handled,  in  the 
case  of  kiln  evaporators,  while  gasoline  for  power  may  be 
added  at  cent  per  bushel,  making  a total  of  .62  cent  per 
bushel  for  these  items.  In  a plant  which  uses  trays,  these 
must  be  renewed  on  the  average  every  third  season,  hence  one- 
third  their  cost  should  be  charged  against  every  season’s  run. 


108 


Overhead  Charges,  Superintendence,  and  Depreciation — 

Here  it  becomes  impossible  to  make  more  than  the  most  general 
statements,  since  every  item  varies  so  widely  with  conditions. 
In  the  best  possible  fireproof  building,  insurance  may  be  dis- 
pensed with,  while  depreciation  and  repairs  may  amount  to 
less  than  10  per  cent  per  annum;  in  a wooden  building  these 
same  items  may  easily  exceed  20  per  cent  of  the  investment. 
The  plant  may  confine  its  activities  to  apples,  or  it  may  handle 
also  prunes  and  berries,  thus  extending  its  working  season 
and  distributing  its  fixed  charges  over  a period  two  and  one- 
half  or  three  times  as  long.  The  supervisor  may  be  a high 
salaried  employee  devoting  his  whole  time  to  the  plant  or  may 
have  other  duties.  Consequently  it  is  just  here  that  no  defi- 
nite figures  can  be  given,  but  it  may  be  said  in  general  terms 
that  the  better  plants  keep  the  total  cost  of  these  items,  to- 
gether with  the  expense  of  l>oxing  or  packing  the  dry  fruit, 
well  under  4 cents  per  bushel. 

Adding  together  all  the  items  enumerated  above,  we  have 
costs  in  cents  per  bushel  as  follows: 


Kiln  with  power 
cents  per  bu 

Kiln  without 
power; 

cents  per  bu 

Tunnel  or  Capson- 
Snyder  with  power; 
cents  per  bu 

Tunnel  or  C-S  with- 

out power; 

cents  per  bu 

Labor  

. 7.75 

9.5 

9.25 

11.25 

Fuel 

. 2.13 

2.13 

2.13 

2.13 

Sulphur  and  minor  supplies. 

. .62 

.62 

.62 

.62 

Overhead 

. 4.00 

4.00 

4.00 

4.00 

Totals 

.14.50 

16.25 

16.00 

18.00 

These  figures  may  fairly  be  taken  to  represent  lowest  possi- 
ble cost  of  production  under  conditions  prevailing  in  this  state. 
Inefficient  furnaces,  badly  planned  buildings,  machines  kept 
in  poor  repair,  the  substitution  of  hand  labor  for  machinery, 
the  employment  of  ‘‘cheap”  inexperienced  and  irresponsible 
labor,  will  cut  down  the  output  and  push  the  cost  of  production 


109 


above  the  figures  here, given,  wliile  the  cost  of  labor  or  of  fuel 
may  also  vary  consideral)ly  from  the  average  figures  given.  On 
the  other  hand,  if  peels  and  cores  can  be  utilized  in  such  man- 
ner as  to  bring  a return,  the  cost  will  be  reduced  by  the  amount 
realized  from  them. 

From  the  data  given  on  another  page,  it  will  be  noted  that 
about  6%  pounds  of  dry  fruit  will  be  obtained,  on  the  average, 
from  one  bushel  of  apples.  At  the  costs  of  handling  estimated 
above,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  cost  of  production  per  pound 
ranges  from  2.15  cents  to  2.66  cents.  With  these  figures  be- 
fore him  and  with  a knowledge  of  the  current  prices  for  evap- 
orated apples,  the  individual  evaporator  must  determine  for 
himself  the  upper  limit  beyond  which  he  cannot  go  in  the  prices 
offered  for  apples  without  foregoing  his  opportunity  to  make 
a legitimate  profit. 


IK) 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 


3 0112  004316458 


